Kolkata, Sep 18: Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said her party would support the Congress in the Nandigram Assembly bypoll. The decision came after the TMC candidate from her faction withdrew her nomination following a meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
Mamata said the move was aimed at strengthening the I.N.D.I.A. bloc. She added that a decision on the Rejinagar seat would be taken later. The bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar are scheduled for October 6, with counting to take place later.
The decision comes amid a dispute within the Trinamool Congress over its name and election symbol. The rival Arup Roy-led faction was given the name Democratic Trinamool Congress and the Envelope symbol.
Mamata strongly criticised the Election Commission’s interim decision to freeze the traditional TMC symbol, Jora Ghash Phul. She called the move “arbitrary” and said it was a “black day for democracy.” “How can they freeze my symbol, which has been with us for the last 28 years?” she asked.
Mamata also accused the BJP of trying to weaken opposition parties across the country. Referring to developments in Maharashtra, she said the BJP had first split parties led by Uddhav Thackeray and the NCP and was now targeting her party.
She also alleged that Suvendu Adhikari had earlier said that he would not allow the TMC’s name and symbol to continue. “We will not bow our heads or surrender. We will fight and bounce back,” Mamata said.
The political situation in Nandigram changed after Sanchita Pradhan Dey, who was nominated by the Mamata-led faction, withdrew her nomination following a meeting with Adhikari at Nabanna.
The Congress’s West Bengal unit had earlier claimed that the TMC approached its central leadership and offered to leave the Nandigram seat to Congress for the October 6 bypoll. The TMC had rejected the claim.
Mamata also said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had spoken to her and that AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal had expressed solidarity. “We will all fight together against the BJP,” she said. (PTI)
