Strains in the Congress-Trinamool ties seem to be disappearing with Mamata Banerjee announcing her party's support to United Progressive Alliance Presidential nominee Pranab Mukherje and the All India Congress Committee now hopes that the TMC would also back Hamid Ansari in the vice presidential race.
Fissures appear to have emerged in the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) as its two key allies, the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, on Thursday clashed over seat sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal.
Alleging there was a "conspiracy by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) to kill Mamata Banerjee after her Lalgarh rally, Trinamool Congress on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram seeking their intervention in the matter.
Despite his influence, Pratik Jain avoids the spotlight. Credit is routinely passed on to colleagues. He maintains no visible faction within the TMC, no personal coterie.
Trinamool Congress leadership is yet to take a call on ghar wapsi (return home) by former TMC leaders who had joined the BJP ahead of the recently concluded assembly elections which the Mamata Banerjee-led party swept.
The Calcutta High Court has cancelled the membership of senior leader Mukul Roy in the West Bengal assembly under the anti-defection law, marking a significant moment in Indian jurisprudence.
It is noteworthy that, rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Suvendu Adhikari formally tendered his resignation to party chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday.
In a veiled reference to West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said he cannot speak in favour of someone who wants to finish him politically and his party in the state.
The BJP's West Bengal unit chief, Samik Bhattacharya, criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, accusing it of crushing democracy and fostering lawlessness in the state. He highlighted alleged political violence, economic decline, and disrespect for constitutional posts under the TMC's rule.
Banerjee, who was seated in front beside the driver, was injured after her head hit the windscreen, he said.
As trends show a resounding victory for Mamata Banerjee and her party the Trinamool Congress in the state of West Bengal, opposition leaders have begun congratulating 'Didi' for her strong show in the polls.
BJP MLA Manoj Kumar Oraon was allegedly attacked by TMC workers while distributing flood relief materials in Alipurduar. The TMC has denied the charges.
West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose on Friday filed a defamation case against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the Calcutta high court, a day after she said that women complained to her saying that they were afraid to visit the Raj Bhavan because of the activities there, a source said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested I-PAC co-founder Vinesh Chandel in connection with a money laundering case linked to the coal scam probe in West Bengal, escalating tensions ahead of the state's Assembly elections.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addressed a rally in West Bengal, promising to tackle crime and joblessness if the BJP comes to power. He criticised the current government for allegedly favouring criminals and failing to protect women.
The 69-year-old leader had a fall inside her Kalighat home in south Kolkata after she returned after attending a programme, her family said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday dramatically turned up at the residence of Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) chief Pratik Jain amid an ongoing Enforcement Directorate raid, alleging that the central agency was attempting to seize the Trinamool Congress's internal documents, hard disks and sensitive data linked to its election strategy.
The comment comes two days after state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said his party won't beg for seats from the TMC.
A political slugfest broke out between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Trinamool Congress on Monday after the latter accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of insulting Bankim Chandra Chatterjee by calling him 'Bankim da', prompting a counter-attack from the saffron party, which accused West Bengal's ruling party of defiling the state's cultural legacy for a decade.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday expressed confidence in the unity of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in combating injustice nationwide, a day after Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee's decision to go solo in the Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal.
The Trinamool Congress, which has asked Railway minister Dinesh Trivedi to quit his post, on Saturday rejected his demand that party supremo Mamata Banerjee should say so in writing to him. "Nothing will be given in writing," Trinamool Congress parliamentary party leader in Lok Sabha Sudip Bandyopadhay told reporters when he was leaving the state secretariat with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, after a meeting which lasted over three hours.
Over 130 Lok Sabha and 63 Rajya Sabha MPs have signed notices seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging partisan conduct and obstruction of electoral fraud investigations.
Political consultancy firm I-PAC has reacted to the Enforcement Directorate's raids at its Kolkata premises, calling it an "unsettling precedent." The raids have triggered political upheaval in West Bengal, where elections are due in months. The firm, engaged by the TMC, said it would continue to work in an "unfazed and unperturbed" manner.
West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Friday said her party did not want to topple the United Progressive Alliance government, of which it is a constituent, but insisted the Congress-led dispensation should also do its part properly, especially in controlling prices.
Banerjee said she will not allow implementation of the CAA, the NRC and the Uniform Civil Code in the state.
The TMC also announced it would hold talks with other regional parties in their bid to take on the BJP in the crucial 2024 elections but at the same time denied that it was planning a third front, separate from the Congress-led front.
Exit polls predict a BJP victory in Assam and an edge in West Bengal, a DMK government in Tamil Nadu, and a Congress-led UDF comeback in Kerala.
Following their meeting, speculation is rife about his political move.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has asserted that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will return to power with a two-thirds majority in the 2026 Assembly elections in the state and ruled out the possibility of stitching any alliance with the Congress. Banerjee's statement comes amidst speculation over a possible Congress-TMC understanding in West Bengal, following the removal of Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury as state Congress president and the appointment of Subhankar Sarkar. However, Banerjee has categorically stated that the TMC will fight alone and secure a historic victory. The Congress, on the other hand, has responded by saying that regional parties are bothered about the Congress because they have realised their mistake in ignoring the party during the Delhi polls. The BJP has downplayed Banerjee's remarks, stating that the TMC's defeat in the upcoming elections is inevitable. The West Bengal Assembly elections are likely to be held in April-May next year.
'We are totally in favour of the country on matters of external affairs. Naming representatives for diplomatic multi-party delegations to counter Pak-backed terrorism is the choice of parties, not of the Centre'
With A P J Abdul Kalam opting out of the Presidential race on Monday, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, who proposed his name, would take a decision on it.
In their resignation letter to All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) chief Mamata Banerjee, the departing leaders said, 'We had thought that the AITC is a secular party but with deep regret, we would like to bring to your notice that AITC has tried to divide Goans on the basis of religion by aligning with Sudan Dhavalikar.'
A final decision on Congress joining the new government in West Bengal at the invitation of ally Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee will be taken by the party high command, senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee said on Sunday. "We will take a final decision after discussions with the Congress high command. Decision will be disclosed at the appropriate time," Mukherjee said. "I congratulate Mamata Banerjee for this fantastic win. It is a big achievement," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a strong attack on the Congress party, accusing them of being unable to accept their repeated electoral defeats and highlighting the achievements of his government.
This was second time in a month that the TMC supremo had a telephonic interaction with the agitating farmers.
Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee has said that the party will raise the incident of the attack over Mamata Banerjee with the Election Commission on Thursday.
A look at the profiles of the ministers in the new Tamil Nadu government led by Joseph C Vijay of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).
The feisty TMC boss also accused the CPI-M of ruining her party's relationship with the Congress, its ally in the Opposition bloc INDIA at the national level.
In a major setback to the opposition INDIA bloc, Banerjee announced that her party has decided to go alone in the state in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
'Why is she against refugees obtaining citizenship? I request refugees not to be afraid, please apply for citizenship'
