West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi shared moments together, enquiring about each other's health and strategising on opposition unity on the first day of the Bengaluru summit, sources told PTI.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that ousting the Bharatiya Janata Party from power at the Centre in 2024 will be her 'last fight'.
Amid escalating tensions with Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, the Congress on Saturday said it was open to the idea of a United Progressive Alliance coordination committee to bring greater cohesion within the alliance. At the same time, it dismissed suggestions that the Congress was scared of Trinamool entering the poll fray in Uttar Pradesh or any other state.
'The decline of the Congress party and its inability to play the lead role in Opposition politics has created a space for the TMC to expand.'
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched a scathing attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the violence during protests against the Waqf law, accusing her of remaining silent while "Bengal is burning." He also said that the only treatment for rioters is stick, as "Those who respond only to thrashing don't understand words."
In a jolt to the Communist Party of India-Marxist-led Left Front in West Bengal, Trinamool Congress defeated its candidates in trouble-torn Nandigram in the three-tier panchayat elections. The front also faced rout in three zilla parishad seats in Singur to Trinamool Congress candidates. The polls are seen as a litmus test for the Buddhadeb Bhattacherjee government's farmland acquisition policy for industries.
In a setback for the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, the exit polls on Saturday predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party will move ahead of Mamata Banerjee's party in the Lok Sabha elections in the state.
Chowdhury termed Banerjee as an "opportunist politician" who altered her stance after realising the changing political landscape.
Bengal govt invokes Acquisition Act to buy land for railways near Singur.
An angry Banerjee slammed a minister, a former Trinamool Congress mayor and a few bureaucrats for their "below-par performance".
Heavy rains in Kolkata have disrupted Durga Puja preparations, causing damage to pandals and delaying inaugurations. Organizers are working to restore decorations and ensure the festivities can proceed.
Former Union Minister Deepa Dasmunsi was on Friday made the Congress candidate from Bhabanipur seat in West Bengal to take on Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee in the assembly elections.
Trinamool Congress leader and Member of Parliament Mahua Moitra has moved the Supreme Court challenging an order of the Election Commission of India for special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar.
United Progressive Alliance on Wednesday projected a united picture on the eve of the Presidential poll with all constituents including Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress and supporting parties attending a lunch hosted by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.
Sachin Mukherjee was shot dead by unknown assailants in Garia.
In a video, Mamata Banerjee can be seen pouring tea into paper cups from a large kettle as people gather around her and record videos of the act.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has filed an election petition against Suvendu Adhikari before the Calcutta high court and the matter is listed for hearing before a single bench.
Seeking to keep Mamata Banerjee in good humour ahead of Presidential poll, the Congress on Tuesday said she had not crossed the limit by suggesting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's name for the President's post and played down the threat by the Trinamool Congress to pull out from government.
A call made by Mamata Banerjee to Vijayamma, wife of late Andhra Pradesh chief minister Dr Y S Rajashekhar Reddy and mother of Jagan Mohan Reddy, is adding frown lines to the faces of Congress and Telegu Desam Party leaders alike.
The Congress party on Thursday sought to downplay Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee's remarks on alliance, saying she was only raising the issue of misuse of central forces in West Bengal, which she has the right to do.
The drama unfolded after Majumdar, a Union minister of state, defied police restrictions and rode a motorbike to Bhabanipur to observe 'Paschimbanga Dibas' (West Bengal Day).
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has demanded that the Election Commission (EC) accept its error in issuing duplicate voter card numbers within 24 hours, threatening to release more documents on the issue if the EC fails to do so. The party alleged that the EC issued the statement after the TMC announced it would hold a press conference on the issue, and termed it an "Epic Scam." The EC had said it would rectify the issue and update its technology-driven platform, but the TMC insists the EC must accept the error. The party also demanded an in-depth probe into the matter.
Banerjee made it clear that she expected the seat-sharing formula to give priority to regional players in areas where they were strong.
'The numbers have been scaled down for the Trinamool Congress. Today, the upper number of victories seems to be 30, with 25 seats being the realistic option. The Trinamool Congress may still be the largest non-BJP, non-Congress party in the next Lok Sabha, but it may not make it to the Cabinet table, leave alone sit in the top chair,' says T V R Shenoy.
Welcoming Trinamool Congress' move to withdraw support to the United Progressive Alliance government, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rajnath Singh on Thursday said if Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party are "honestly opposed" to FDI in retail they should also follow Mamata Banerjee's footsteps.
The couple met during morning walks, and the relationship grew over time.
Congress, which is an ally of the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, on Monday questioned the recurrence of train accidents and said the railway ministry was not safe in the hands of state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party.
Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress inflicted a crushing blow to the ruling Left front in the civic polls on Wednesday, capturing the prestigious Kolkata Municipal Corporation and bagging 36 other municipalities in the "semi-finals" ahead of next year's assembly elections.
A day after the Congress sought to reach out to its allies, party general secretary M Shakeel Ahmed on Saturday called on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to discuss 'things important to the state and general national scenario'. Emerging from a meeting with Banerjee, which lasted for about 45 minutes, Ahmed told reporters, "It is a courtesy call. We discussed things which are important to West Bengal and the general national scenario."
Banerjee, on a visit to Maharashtra, was scheduled to meet Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray earlier, but as he is unwell, she met his son and minister Aaditya Thackeray, sources said.
A senior TMC leader will be present at the proposed meeting, he said.
Having been outwitted by Trinamool Congress' Mamata Banerjee after she sent the Tata Nano car project packing from West Bengal by demanding that land be returned to unwilling farmers, the Communist Party of India-Marxist is getting ready to do a Singur on Banerjee.
The rancour of associating with the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist while forming the board of the Siliguri Corporation has now created a major problem for the West Bengal unit of the Congress, as Debaprasad Roy, one of the vice-presidents of the state Congress, has resigned from the post, protesting the Left help sought by his party to gain power in the municipality.
The Communist Party of India-Marxist on Wednesday hit out at the Trinamool Congress blaming it for seeking the stoppage of anti-Maoist operations in West Bengal and providing 'political patronage' to the extremists.
'Why should they say that their doors are open? Are we beggars? My doors are open for them,' a defiant Mamata said.
The Congress initially was aspiring for a contest in 90 seats in West Bengal. However, it seems the party decided to settle for a compromise to keep the alliance alive.
Capping weeks of hard bargaining, Congress finally accepted Trinamool Congress' seat-sharing formula and will contest 14 of the 42 seats while Trinamool Congress would be in fray in 28.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Sougata Roy has demanded the removal of Kalyan Banerjee as the party's chief whip in the Lok Sabha after a spat with fellow MP Mahua Moitra. Roy accused Banerjee of "uncivilised" behaviour on multiple occasions and cited incidents of Banerjee breaking a bottle and throwing it at the chairman of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting and making inappropriate remarks about Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. The spat between Moitra and Banerjee reportedly occurred on April 4 when a TMC delegation met the Election Commission over duplicate voter ID numbers. Banerjee was tasked with collecting signatures from TMC MPs on a memorandum to be submitted to the Election Commission, and Moitra alleged that she was not included in the signatories, leading to a heated exchange. Roy, who was present at the time, said he saw Moitra crying and complaining about Banerjee's behaviour. Roy believes that Banerjee's actions warrant his removal as chief whip and left the decision to Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee. The incident has also been highlighted in leaked WhatsApp messages, where Banerjee engaged in heated exchanges with another TMC MP, Kirti Azad, leading to further accusations of uncivilised behaviour.
The bypolls are considered to be important ahead of the assembly elections in 2016.
Hundreds of local people and party activists accompanied her, shouting the slogan of 'Mamata Banerjee Zindabad!'.
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