Cong, TC tie up for LS polls

The Trinamool Congress tonight formed an alliance with the Congress in West Bengal to contest the Lok Sabha elections against the ruling Left Front. The decision was announced after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee here.

“We (Congress and Trinamool Congress) will jointly fight the coming Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal against the ruling Left Front,” Mukherjee told reporters with Banerjee sitting beside him.

Asked about the number of seats the Congress and TC would contest, the WBPCC chief said: “Our talks were very useful...Very soon the final details about the seat-sharing arrangement would be announced.”

Banerjee also expressed satisfaction at the alliance. “We want to take on the CPI (M) together. The talks were good.”

AICC leader in charge of West Bengal, K Keshava Rao, was also present at the meeting that lasted for an hour.

West Bengal has 42 parliamentary seats.

Asked whether it was an alliance or seat adjustment between the two parties, Mukherjee, also the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) president, said: “You can give any nomenclature.”

The Trinamool chief said, “the fight against the Left Front in West Bengal was tough for the last 32 years. No decision can be better than this because we do not want that there should be a split in anti-Left Front votes,” she said.