By IANS,
Kolkata : West Bengal’s principal opposition political force Trinamool Congress Saturday admitted it has initiated talks with the Congress about seat adjustment in the state for the coming Lok Sabha elections but nothing has been finalised yet.
“We initiated a dialogue with a few Congress leaders over seat adjustment almost two months back. They asked for 12 seats, including the six constituencies where Congress candidates were elected in the last election,” Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee told a press conference here.
“The Congress wanted to field its candidates in all the 12 seats in the ensuing Lok Sabha polls. But after that we got no further communication from their end,” she said.
She said the Trinamool Congress did not want the anti-communist vote bank to be divided in the election.
“We are working with the people of Bengal and will continue to fight against the anti-people policies of the CPI-M,” Banerjee added.
Asked if the state Congress leaders have sent any overtures to her in the last few days to firm up an electoral alliance with Trinamool, Banerjee said: “We have not seen any such interest or initiative from them.”
“So far, we’ve not decided anything on the alliance with any big political party. If there is any such development, I will let you know. We don’t believe in any ‘hide and seek’ formula.”
Talking about the process of political dialogue, Banerjee said: “To continue talks with various parties is a courtesy in politics.”
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress Saturday also gave financial help to family members of several people who lost their family members in Nandigram, Singur and Lalgarh agitations.
The party gave Rs.10,000 each to 25 families in Nandigram, two in Singur and three in West Midnapore’s Lalgarh.
“As the notification for the Lok Sabha election is likely to be declared in the next few days, we finished this process today (Saturday) to avoid the violation of the election code of conduct,” she said.