Realising that there will be an unprecedented demand for party nominations for the coming Assembly election, Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday warned her party leaders against any lobbying for party tickets. Ms Banerjee was discussing strategy for the polls in the important core committee meeting which was held at the Trinamul Bhavan. Nearly all important leaders, including Sudip Bandopadhyay, Saugata Roy, Subrata Mukherjee, Partha Chatterjee and Sisir Adhikari, were present in the meeting.
Emulating the Congress president Sonia Gandhi who had before the last Lok Sabha election warned her party leaders against lobbying for nominations, Ms Banerjee also told her partymen that she should have a free hand. “Didi said that the party will decide who will the candidate from which seat. She warned that there should be no clamour for ticket and no one should approach me or any other senior leader, seeking a ticket for either himself or on behalf of anyone else,” a party insider revealed.
He said that already names of possible candidates have been pouring in because even the bitterest critics of the Trinamul Congress also believed that the party was on the threshold of power. “Didi realises that unless she has a free hand, finalising the list of candidates will be a herculean task,” he added.
“The 35 year long misrule of the Left Front versus the spectacular success of Mamata Banerjee in less than two years will be our slogan...,” he added.