Mamata wants Congress-less alliance to take on BJP, says Sena leader

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday said West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was contemplating a Congress-less alliance to take on the BJP.

In his weekly column ‘Rokhthok’ in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana, Raut also claimed Banerjee having said that her party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), would not test political waters in Maharashtra.

The TMC leadership on Saturday said it would continue to cobble up an alternative front as the Congress had “failed to lead the fight” against the BJP.

During her recent visit to Mumbai, Banerjee had claimed that “there is no UPA now”.

Also read: There’s no UPA, declares Mamata Banerjee after meeting Sharad Pawar

On Friday, TMC mouthpiece Jago Bangla launched a fresh attack on the Congress, saying it has gone into a “deep freezer”.

Recently, Jago Bangla also claimed that Banerjee, and not Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, had emerged as the face of the opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Raut, whose party shares power with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra, on Sunday said: “It looks like Banerjee is contemplating something new excluding the Congress.”

He also said that during her meeting with Shiv Sena leader and state minister Aaditya Thackeray in Mumbai, she told him that “we will not come here as the Shiv Sena and the NCP are strong”.

The Rajya Sabha member noted that the TMC was going to contest the forthcoming assembly polls in neighbouring Goa and was also spreading its wings in the north-eastern states of Tripura and Meghalaya.

He said during her Mumbai visit, Banerjee had discussed with Aaditya Thackeray the exchange of tourism and culture between the two states.

She sought land for the construction of a ‘Bengal Bhavan’ in Mumbai for patients who come to the city for treatment, especially at the Tata Memorial Hospital, said Raut, who is the executive editor of Saamana.

“The two states share an emotional bond dating back to history. It was decided that the bond should be further strengthened for the benefit of the younger generation so that they can get a peak into the history,” the Sena leader said.

He also said Banerjee had invited Aaditya Thackeray for the upcoming Kolkata International Film Festival.

During her Mumbai visit, Aaditya Thackeray and Raut had met Banerjee on behalf of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, who is currently recuperating after a cervical spine surgery.