Adhir gets praise from Kharge after snub over remarks on Mamata
“What has happened in West Bengal is that the Congress has taken a decision to have a coalition with the Left and we are moving forward with that," Kharge said
Two days after snubbing Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury for questioning TMC chief Mamata Banerjee’s loyalty towards INDIA, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday (May 20) praised the West Bengal Congress chief as a "combative soldier" of the party.
Kharge had pulled up Chowdhury, a five-time Lok Sabha member from Baharampur, last week for his remarks that Banerjee cannot be trusted and that she might go with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the Lok Sabha elections.
Combative soldier
"Vo hamarey ladaku sipahi hain (He is our combative solider)," Kharge said about Chowdhury on Monday.
Chowdhury had stepped up his aggression against the West Bengal chief minister saying she has used violence to crush the Congress in the state and was covertly helping the BJP.
Kharge told PTI: "He is a combative soldier of the Congress party and is our leader in West Bengal.”
Congress-Left tie
Kharge said some TMC leaders were now raising the issue of the Congress alliance with the Left.
"They are trying to present it differently. But it will not happen like this as the Congress party is strong and understands each other.
“What has happened in West Bengal is that the Congress high command has taken a decision to have a coalition with the Left and we are moving forward with that," Kharge said.
Adhir snubbed
It was on Saturday that Kharge dismissed Chowdhury's criticism of Banerjee while addressing a press conference in Mumbai along with Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar.
"Mamata Banerjee is with the alliance. She has recently said that she will join the government. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will not take the decision. The decision will be taken by me and the high command and those who don't agree will go out," Kharge had said.
Mamata and INDIA
After Kharge's remarks, several posters and hoardings of the Congress president were defaced with ink in front of the party's state headquarters in Kolkata on Sunday.
Banerjee had initially said she would extend outside support to the opposition INDIA alliance if it takes power. She later said she was very much part of the anti-BJP grouping at the national level and would join its government after the Lok Sabha elections.
