Congress in Bengal on wait-and-watch mode

Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee’s decision to put an end to the three-and-a-half year old rocky relationship with the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance(UPA) has raised mixed reaction from the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC), which is part of the ruling alliance in the state.

However, the state leadership claims that Congress party members were “ill-treated” by the TMC in the state.

The leadership in West Bengal is now in a dilemma with most of them resorting to a wait-and-watch mode on the drama at the Centre. “Her ministers are yet to resign or formally submit resignation. The Congress leadership here is not pulling the trigger now, we are on a wait-and-watch mode. Even now, she has given a breathing space for negotiations. I think they are under notion that what is good economics is bad politics,” said Omprakash Mishra, WPCC General Secretary.

 

According to state leaders backroom talks are going on to find a solution to the issue, while the alliance in the state will depend on how things at the Centre will turn out to be. “TMC was treating the Congress workers in the state badly and weaken us. It was trying to grow at the cost of Congress. The success of TMC in 2009 Lok Sabha elections was also because of us,” Mishra added.

Senior Congress leader and MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury too echoed his Mishra. “As far of increasing the cap on LPG is concerned, even Congress leaders have written to the Prime Minister, it is not only Banerjee’s demand as she projects. The alliance in state will be decided after Friday by the Centre leadership, as TMC has not formally withdrawn her support,” Chowdhury said.

Banerjee has announced her withdrawal of support on Tuesday, against the Centre policy on foreign direct investment in retail,  diesel price hike and decision to cap subsidised LPG cylinders.

According to state leaders, Banerjee was upset by the fact that neither UPA Sonia Gandhi, nor Prime Minister Manmohan Singh got in touch with her on Tuesday.

In the 2011 assembly elections, an alliance between the TMC and Congress alliance came to power winning 227 seats. While the TMC won in 184 seats, Congress got 42 seats. Though Congress is a part of the state government, the TMC government can sustain even without its support.