Kolkata: A day after the Trinamul Congress publicly snubbed Congress over any alliance in West Bengal for the Lok Sabha Election, the relation between the two key partners of the anti-BJP forum, I.N.D.I.A., has soured further.
This became evident on Thursday when Congress scion Rahul Gandhi cut short his five-day Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Bengal over angry protests by the TMC within hours of his entry to the state from Assam with his public outreach campaign.
He later flew to New Delhi on a two-day break. Swinging into damage control mode again the Congress this time appealed to TMC supremo and chief minister Mamata Banerjee to attend Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra since she claimed on Wednesday to be in the dark about it. TMC also hit back at the Congress.
At around 10 am on Thursday, Mr Gandhi, travelling in his caravan, reached Bakshirhat in Coochbehar of North Bengal where state Congress chief Adhir Choudhury, who is also the party's Lok Sabha leader, welcomed him with fanfare.
Without referring to TMC, Mr Gandhi told the party workers, “We have added Nyay to our rally because Anyay is happening in the country. BJP and RSS are spreading hatred, violence and Anyay everywhere. That is why I.N.D.I.A. formation is going together to fight Anyay.”
He later held a small roadshow in the Khagrabari area. Meanwhile, local TMC workers launched protests under the banner of Coochbehar Nagorik Mancha in various parts of the district against Mr Gandhi's visit. One of their placards read, “Didi alone is enough for Bengal” while “Congress weaker than BJP” was written in another.
Apparently upset with the opposition, Mr Gandhi postponed his tour which included a visit to Tufanganj to address a party rally and a night stay at Falakata in the district. He later travelled to Hasimara airbase in Alipurduar from where he flew to New Delhi via Bagdogra.
Senior AICC leader Jairam Ramesh later said, “Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Bengal will have a two-day break on January 26 and 27. Mr Gandhi will return to Bengal on January 28 and resume his programme” before reaching out to the TMC and its chief with fresh energy for seat-sharing.
Mr Ramesh explained, “We know TMC is at the top in the present scenario in Bengal. It is also an important pillar in the 28 opposition parties’ alliance. Mamtaji has a special position and different identity in Indian politics. She is very much needed to defeat the BJP. We hope to find a middle path as a solution anyway.”
He added, “Mallikarjun Khargeji had sent an invitation letter and email to Mamataji to participate in Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. From Sonia Gandhi to Rahulji to Khargeji, everyone wants her to join us. We know she remains occupied with work as a CM. If she comes for even 10-15 minutes, the significance of our initiative will grow further.”
TMC spokespersons, Derek O'Brien, a Rajya Sabha MP, and Kunal Ghosh, the party's state general secretary, however, pointed fingers at Mr Choudhury, who is Berhampore Congress MP, over his continuous tirade against Ms Banerjee.
They accused him of “speaking in the language of BJP” for defending the central agencies’ crackdown on their party leaders and blamed him as a “detractor” in the alliance between TMC and Congress. Mr Ghosh also wondered why Mr Ramesh did not invite Ms Banerjee earlier to attend the Congress programme.
