Although both sides are committed to continue their alliance till at least the 2011 West Bengal Assembly elections and dislodging the ruling Left Front, a game of political pressure between the Congress and Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TC) is already on the rise, top UPA leaders feel.
Banerjee, who started her innings with the UPA on a promising note of being a “reasonable and matured” ally, has started losing her ground on the dependency quotient, according to senior Congress leaders. After her vehement protest against the Centre’s Land Acquisition (amendments) and the Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bills, the railway minister is trying to snatch away Congress’ two pet constituencies in the Bengal Assembly by-polls.
Congress sources suggest the total absence of Trinamool MPs during the passing of the Finance Bill in the Lok Sabha on Monday has irked even Congress President Sonia Gandhi. While Trinamool MP Shatabdi Roy, considered close to Banerjee, denied any plan to boycott the Finance Bill passing by TC, some Congress leaders have pointed out to the Congress brass about the ‘boycott’ of the TC during the Finance Bill passing.
“We are convinced that because our party is keen to pass the Land Acquisition amendments and the R&R Bills, she boycotted the Finance Bill talks. But we fail to understand why she did it. Because of her objections, the Bills could not be passed in the last Cabinet meeting,” said a Congress minister.
Even as the mercurial Mamata Banerjee, currently riding high on a series of spectacular wins from Panchayat to Parliament elections, has started throwing tantrums, a large section of the Congress feels the coalition is safe at least till 2011 — because Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi want to teach the Left a lesson and prefer to align with Banerjee. With 20 seats, the TC is currently the biggest ally of the Congress in the UPA. “But the question is how far we should allow her to go like this,” said a party general secretary.
Banerjee has set her eyes on the two seats of Sealdah and Bowbazar — where the by-polls are due shortly. She also claims since the representatives of the two seats had crossed over to her side, the TC should be allowed to contest in the two seats.
K Keshava Rao, the Congress general secretary in charge of West Bengal, held a meeting with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today.
According to Congress sources, Rao and the state Congress leadership are determined to fight at least one seat and can agree to give the other to Banerjee. “But Banerjee is still adamant and wants to deny tickets completely,” said a leader involved in the discussion.
The state Congress has drawn up a plan to file nomination in both seats if Banerjee doesn’t agree to this “peace formula”.
“If the high command permits, we will fight both the seats,” said another senior leader.
During the formation of the second UPA, both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi were impressed with Banerjee as she didn’t demand any specific portfolio and left the choice of ministerial portfolios for her party up to the Congress leadership.
“While the DMK bargained hard with us, Banerjee took just three minutes to finalise the portfolios. But now she has completely changed,” observed another leader.
Meanwhile, TC leaders feel the Congress has no prospect without their support in Bengal and whatever demands the TC are making, it is “realistic and proportional to our political strength” said a senior TC leader.
