Buoyed by its landslide victory in the civic polls, the Trinamul Congress on Tuesday put the Congress on notice, claiming it was strong and capable enough to rule West Bengal and contest future elections on its own strength.
The Trinamul Congress won four of the six municipal bodies which had gone to polls on Sunday. After the announcement of the results, All India Trinamul Congress general secretary and railway minister Mukul Roy said: “These civic election results have proved that the Trinamul Congress has enough strength to rule Bengal alone and contest future elections on its own strength.”
An elated Mr Roy pointed out that the ruling party had won 72 of the 129 wards where elections were held. “This shows that the people of Bengal have reaffirmed their faith in the state government led by Mamata Banerjee. It has been established that the Trinamul Congress can stand on its own feet on the soil of Bengal; the Trinamul Congress has stood on its own feet. We fought these polls against the CPI(M), Congress, BJP and the Maoists,” he added. Mr Roy went so far as to indicate that in future Trinamul Congress might lead a coalition of small parties sans the Congress in the state.
Ridiculing the CPI(M)’s oft-repeated pledge to turnaround, Mr Roy said that there had been no turnaround. He said that the CPI(M) may become extinct. He did not spare the Congress either. Again without mentioning its name, Mr Roy said that the party had become irrelevant in the state.
Echoing his sentiments, party secretary general and state industries minister Partha Chatterjee said that the civic poll results had proved that the people’s faith in Ms Banerjee’s leadership has increased.
Reacting sharply to Mr Roy’s hint that the Trinamul Congress could do without the Congress, state Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya said that even the Congress was ready to go it alone.