At grand joint rally, a glimpse of Congress-Siddiqui seat tussle

On a day the Congress, Left Front and Furfura cleric Abbas Siddiqui-led Indian Secular Front (ISF) kicked off their marketing campaign for the West Bengal Assembly elections with a mammoth joint rally at Kolkata’s Brigade Parade Ground, pressure over seat sharing was seen between Congress and ISF leaders who’re nonetheless engaged in talks.
The Sanjukta Morcha or United Front rally was attended by Left leaders Sitaram Yechury, Suryakanta Mishra, Biman Bose, D Raja and Manoj Bhattacharya; Congress leaders Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel; and ISF founder Pirzada Abbas Siddiqui and his brother Naushad Siddiqui.
Siddiqui, whose entry briefly disrupted the speech of Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, introduced from the stage that he wouldn’t subject candidates towards the AIMIM and pledged to provide his “blood” for the United Front.
“The Left has given us seats as per our demand… In the coming days, people will overthrow BJP and its B-team Mamata. Wherever the Left Front will field its candidates, we will give our blood, if necessary. If this (seat-sharing) agreement had been arrived at a week earlier, I would have gathered twice as many people because the people of Bengal are angry with the Mamata government.”
Siddiqui had earlier mentioned that the Left Front had agreed to half with 30 seats for his celebration whereas seat-sharing talks with the Congress had been nonetheless underway.
At the rally at Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata. (Express photograph by Partha Paul)
Meanwhile, senior leaders of the three events lashed out on the TMC and BJP, accusing them of a “communal agenda”.
“Even though both (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi and (Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee have come to power by democratic means, they are now out to destroy democracy and establish an autocratic state. We shall restore democracy after coming to power. We have to fight unitedly against the TMC and BJP. I want to say those who are spreading misinformation, change your mind. We have to stop both parties,” mentioned Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, including “the massive gathering proves that the upcoming elections will not be a two-cornered contest”.
He mentioned the BJP and the ruling TMC need that aside from these two events, there shouldn’t exist another political pressure within the state. “In future, there will not be any BJP or TMC, only the grand alliance will remain,” added Chowdhury, the chief of the Congress within the Lok Sabha.
Chhattisgarh CM Baghel accused the BJP and TMC of attempting to divide individuals. “The country has to be saved from one, and Bengal has to be rescued from the other,” he mentioned.
“We had fought earlier against the Whites and now we have to fight against the thieves,” he mentioned, remembering Bengal’s contribution to the liberty wrestle.
CPM basic secretary Yechury attacked Modi for his “anti-farmer” insurance policies and expressed confidence that the alliance can put up a courageous combat identical to farmers on the Delhi border. “The farmers at the Singhu border in Delhi are fighting against the (Narendra) Modi government’s anti-people policies. If farmers who provide us with food can put up such a gallant fight, we too can do it here… This grand alliance of the Left and the secular forces will fight to defeat the corrupt TMC government and the BJP… will fight for a better Bengal,” Yechury mentioned
Taking exception to Modi’s “andolanjeevi” jibe, CPI basic secretary D Raja mentioned, “Our country and its Constitution should be saved from Modi. He called us ‘andolanjeevi’. Yes, I am. I am fighting to save my life and my country. The TMC and BJP are the same. We have to defeat them at any cost. Save Bengal, save country. I am appealing to all to support the Left-Cong-ISF alliance in the election.”

Former West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, nevertheless, couldn’t make it to the rally due to his well being, in response to Left leaders.
Criticising the “communal agenda” of the TMC and the BJP, CPM secretary Suryakanta Mishra burdened the necessity for another and mentioned the Left-Congress grand alliance would combat to supply employment and usher in industrial improvement within the state.
Mishra mentioned that West Bengal wanted a authorities that will not be a “copycat” of those run by the TMC and the BJP. “The TMC and the BJP are two sides of the same coin. Their agenda is to divide people on communal lines… We have seen how TMC leaders are joining the BJP lock, stock and barrel,” he mentioned. “We need a government which can fill up all the vacancies in state government jobs and semi-government sectors within a year. Neither the TMC nor the BJP can do it.”