Kolkata: West Bengal Congress chief, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, criticized the INDIA alliance partner, Trinamool Congress, asserting that he has previously defeated the party. His comments followed reports that TMC is poised to field candidates in all 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal.

Dismissing the notion that he is not a significant factor, Adhir Ranjan remarked, "Those who think that I am not a factor, it’s okay. I don't care about anyone. Our leaders have already spoken. I have reached here only by contesting and winning. We know to contest and win," during a media interaction in Siliguri.

Adhir Ranjan's response was prompted by Bengal's TMC General Secretary, Kunal Ghosh, who stated, "We are ready to contest all 42 seats," taking a swipe at Congress and emphasizing that the party should discuss seat-sharing based on ground reality rather than resorting to the "politics of pressure." Ghosh mentioned that the final decision on seats would be made by TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee.

Trinamool is a part of the INDIA bloc alliance with Congress, and a seat-sharing agreement was anticipated for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal.

The decision to field candidates for all 42 seats in West Bengal reportedly arose from a meeting of Trinamool's top leadership with the Murshidabad district officials. Murshidabad district encompasses three Lok Sabha seats — Jangipur, Berhampur, and Murshidabad. In the 2019 election, Congress secured the Berhampur seat, while the other two were won by TMC.

Despite Mamata Banerjee's previous indication of no seat-sharing with Congress or the Left Front in the state, the alliance had seemed likely. Addressing a rally in West Bengal in December, Mamata emphasized the INDIA bloc's presence nationwide, declaring, "In Bengal, the TMC will fight and defeat the BJP. Remember, in Bengal, only TMC can teach a lesson to the BJP and not any other party." In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP surprised by winning 18 out of 42 seats, with Congress securing only 2 seats and Mamata Banerjee’s party winning 22 seats.

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