Mamata’s call for anti-BJP unity at Martyr’s Day rally junked by Congress, Left

Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s renewed appeal for opposition parties to unite under the INDIA bloc to take on the BJP drew little enthusiasm from rival parties on Tuesday, with the Congress and the CPI(M) rejecting her overture and questioning her political credibility.

Addressing a rally in front of Birla Planetarium in Kolkata to mark the July 21 Martyrs’ Day observance, Banerjee appealed to opposition parties to put aside differences and join hands against the BJP.

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“I had said on Rabindra Jayanti that we should fight across India under the INDIA bloc. Let us do the same in Bengal as well. I have no ego, no resentment against anyone. Otherwise, remember this — those who are today being allowed by the BJP to open party offices and hold meetings and rallies will also be finished after they finish us,” she said.

Without naming any party in her speech, Banerjee reiterated the appeal she had first made on Rabindra Jayanti, when she had invited the Congress, the Left and other opposition forces to join hands against the BJP in West Bengal.

The BJP was quick to react on the proposal. Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya said Banerjee should first focus on uniting her own party before attempting to forge an opposition alliance.

“She is now speaking about a united force. Let her first unify her own party, then she can think of unifying other political parties. A few months ago she challenged Rahul Gandhi and now she is dreaming of an alliance with the Congress. This is ridiculous,” Bhattacharya said.

Claiming that Banerjee had lost public confidence, he added that “people have rejected the Trinamool Congress” and alleged that she was unable to accept that she was no longer the chief minister.

The Congress also reacted cautiously, recalling its past political association with Banerjee. West Bengal Congress president Shubhankar Sarkar said the party had suffered politically because of Banerjee in the past.

“Mamata Banerjee’s rise came at the cost of the Congress on several occasions. She tried to destroy the Congress, and today, standing on the edge of a political crisis, she is seeking help. I hope our central leadership will keep these factors in mind before considering any alliance,” Sarkar said.

Sarkar was referring to the past when the two parties joined hands again ahead of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, a partnership that eventually paved the way for the Trinamool Congress’ victory in the 2011 Assembly elections.

However, within two years of coming to power, Banerjee parted ways with the Congress and chose to govern on her own, without returning to the NDA, consolidating her party’s dominance in the state.

CPI(M) state secretary Mohammed Salim also played down Banerjee’s appeal, saying her remarks did not merit much attention.

“I don’t think there is much importance to what Mamata Banerjee is saying now. Her own party is in disarray. She should first put her own house in order,” Salim said.