Congress is free to quit alliance

Mamata Banerjee

The widening rift between Congress and Trinamool Congress came out in the open yesterday with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee lashing out at her ally at the Centre and said it was free to quit the alliance.
Congress, however, has said it would not quit from ministry in West Bengal, stressing that it would remain in the government as long as the people desired.
The Trinamool chief accused the Congress of spreading canard against her party because it had opposed FDI in retail, petrol price hike and interference in the federal structure.
“Congress is spreading canard and is carrying out false propaganda against TC on the issue of assault on the principal of Raigunj University college on January 5 because we opposed FDI in retail, frequent petrol price hikes and total interference into federal structure”.
“Lokayukta was forcibly included in the Lokpal bill. They [Congress] had not paid heed to our words. Voting was not done on it,” Mamata told reporters at the State secretariat.
“If Congress feels they can go with CPI(M), they can do it. The Door is open for them. If Congress works with CPI(M), they will not get Trinamool Congress. TC can go it alone”, she said.
Congress was worried because Trinamool Congress decided to contest coming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Manipur, Mamata said, adding she was speaking as the party chief.
Alleging that Congress and CPI(M) were working together, she said the “small incident” of assault on college principal Dilip De Sarkar after a clash between Trinamool Chhatra Parishad and Chhatra Parishad of Congress was being “blown out of proportion intentionally” to malign her party.
Mamata, however, dubbed the incident as “unfortunate” and said “Sometime young people commit mistakes. Those who did it (assaulted the principal) will be arrested ... We are taking whatever action is required to be taken in this case.”
Trinamool Congress also accused Congress of trying to create lawlessness in the State in order to “help” CPI(M) and warned that both government and the party would not tolerate it.
“NOT AT ANYONE'S MERCY”
“We are not in the ministry to satisfy anyone's will, but we are there to fulfil people's wishes,” West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) president Pradip Bhattacharya told PTI yesterday.
Referring to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's outburst, Pradip said “what she has said is very clear to us. We are not here at anyone's mercy.”
Stating that the Congress and Trinamool Congress had fought the Assembly elections together and the latter benefited from it, the WBPCC chief said “the Trinamool Congress has also got thousands of Congress votes in seats where it won.”
“We are in the ministry to fulfil the desires of the people who voted for us and on direction of our party High Command,” he said.
“We will remain in the ministry as long as the people desires,” he said.