Mamata Banerjee Announces 2024 Strategy: Supporting Cong Where it is Strong, But With a Catch

In the first major announcement regarding TMC’s strategy and ‘Opposition Unity’ for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said her party would extend support to the Congress in regions where it has a strong presence.

“Wherever the Congress is strong, let them fight. We will give them support, there is nothing wrong (in that). But they have to support other political parties also,” the TMC supremo told reporters at the state secretariat.

Banerjee emphasized that in order to receive support, the Congress must also extend its backing to other political parties.

The chief minister firmly stated her expectation that the seat-sharing formula should prioritize regional players in regions where they hold significant influence. “Strong regional parties must be given priority,” she said.

While refraining from mentioning the grand old party with which TMC has had conflicts in the past, Banerjee previously expressed her appreciation to the people of Karnataka after the BJP lost power in the recently held state assembly elections.

In her tweets, she applauded the people of Karnataka for their resolute mandate in favor of change. Banerjee underscored the rejection of authoritarian and majoritarian politics, emphasizing that the spontaneous will of the people cannot be suppressed by any centralized dominance.

While Mamata expressed her joy in defeating the BJP through her tweet, she refrained from explicitly congratulating the Congress party.

According to News18 reports, the Trinamool Congress perceives the people’s mandate as a rejection of the BJP rather than a victory for Congress. Even in Mamata’s media interactions, she stressed that the BJP would not cross 100 seats in the Lok Sabha, echoing the sentiment of “no vote to BJP.”

The Congress-TMC relationship has been strained in the past year and a half, with Mamata Banerjee led party blaming Congress for not effectively countering the BJP, and instead contributed to the saffron party’s strong position.

(With inputs from PTI)