West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee greets supporters during an election roadshow for the Lok Sabha polls, in Howrah, on May 15, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said she would “provide outside support” to the INDIA bloc in the interest of the people of the State.
“We will provide leadership to the INDIA alliance and help them in every way from outside. We will form a government so that in Bengal our mothers and sisters never face a problem and those who work in the 100-day-job scheme do not face problems,” the Trinamool Congress chairperson said while addressing a public meeting.
The remarks by the Chief Minister come at a time when four phases of elections on nearly 70% seats across the country have been concluded. In West Bengal, however, 24 out of the 42 seats are yet to vote.
Ms. Banerjee, who has been maintaining that the CPI(M) and the Congress in West Bengal were helping the BJP in the State, continued to differentiate between the parties’ leadership at the State and the national levels. “You must know this that in the INDIA alliance, don’t count the Bengal Congress and CPI(M). Those two are not with us. Those two are with the BJP. I am talking about Delhi,” she said.
When the Opposition bloc was set up by several parties, the Chief Minister participated in a few meetings. She has also claimed to have given the name ‘INDIA’ to the bloc.
The Left parties led by the CPI(M) and the Congress have fielded candidates on all the 42 seats in the State. In certain seats in Malda and Murshidabad, the Left-Congress candidates have run a good campaign. The alliance has fielded young candidates in several other seats in the State and their campaign is generating curiosity among voters.
Political observers say the remarks are aimed to get support of the Congress and Left voters when most of the seats in south Bengal are going to polls.
