Congress attitude towards Mamata largely concilliatory.
After dillydallying for about two years, the Congress high command finally decided to appoint a full-time president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) and accordingly announced today the name of Manas Bhuiyan as the new PCC president.
Manas Bhuiyan is at present the leader of the Congress legislative party and is known to be a close associate of Congress Working Committee member Pranab Mukherjee. Political observers feel that by appointing Manas Bhuiyan as the leader of the state Congress, the high command has sent a clear signal to the camp of Mamata Banerjee that it would definitely like to leave the bitterness created during the recent municipal election behind.
Ever since Priyaranjan DasMunshi became incapacitated with serious illness, Pranab Mukherjee was given the additional responsibility of looking after the workings of state PCC as its temporary president.
But as the all-important state assembly election is knocking at the doors, the Congress high command finally felt the urgency of appointing a full-time PCC president in West Bengal.
Though there were several aspirants to the post, the real challenge could have come from Adhir Choudhury, the heavyweight leader from Murshidabad district.
Adhir is known for his hardline approach to the contentious issue of dealing with the emerging political force in Bengal, the TMC led by Mamata Banerjee. In last year's Lok Sabha elections and during municipal elections this year, Adhir Choudhury fought tooth and nail against the formation of an alliance between the Congress and the TMC.
The hardliners, however, got a big jolt in the municipal elections as the TMC scored an impressive victory in Kolkata and elsewhere and the Congress fared badly.
Immediately after the municipal elections, Keshav Rao, the AICC general secretary in charge of Bengal, went on record saying that the Congress would definitely have an electoral alliance with the TMC in the coming assembly election.
It is not a mere coincidence that last night, after the meeting between Sonia Gandhi and Pranab Mukherjee where the name of Manas Bhuiyan was finalised, Mamata Banerjee attended a dinner party at Pranab's residence.
Manas Bhuiyan, who had been camping in Delhi for the past few days, could not be contacted. Adhir Choudhury, talking from Baharampur, said, "I am a disciplined soldier of the Congress and I will definitely work towards strengthening the party."
But, some in the state Congress are sceptic and wonder if this would usher in fresh change in the state.
One senior Congress leader, who does not want to be named, said, "By nominating Manas Bhuiyan, the high command has given a signal that West Bengal is no longer considered to be politically important for Delhi." In fact, Manas Bhuiyan, who is an MLA from Sabang in East Midnapur, will definitely be dependent on TMC's support to win in the next election.
The results of Panchayat, Lok Sabha and municipal elections clearly show that like the CPI(M), the Congress is also no longer enjoying the popular support in that district.
While Adhir Choudhury can fight and win elections based on his own organisational strength in Murshidabad, very few Congress leaders can claim that status in West Bengal today.
So, by anointing Manas in the chair of PCC president, Congress high command has made it clear that keeping in mind next year's assembly elections, the Congress-TMC alliance should be on a firmer ground.
