Will do better in Meghalaya next time, Sagardighi lost due to immoral alliance: Mamata Banerjee

Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal congratulated people for giving 15 per cent votes in Meghalaya to her party while attributing its defeat in Sagardighi by-poll to "immoral alliance" and "communal card".

Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister on Thursday congratulated the people of Meghalaya for bestowing their faith on Trinamool Congress, whose vote share is 15 per cent while alleging of an "immoral alliance" leading to her pary's defeat in Sagardighi bye-polls in Murshidabad district.

"In only six months, our party has managed to secure 15 per cent votes. We will do better next time. There was some confusion, with Congress saying Mamata is in Congress, which I was earlier but it is just a misunderstanding," Banerjee said at a press conference at Nabanna state secretariat.

On the election results in Tripura, she said no party has got the majority but added that the BJP can "easily purchase MLAs which is their habit". Banerjee further said Congress won the Sagardighi seat due to an "immoral alliance" between the Congress, CPI-M, and the BJP. "We condemn such kind of politics. BJP transferred its votes to Congress while CPI-M and Congress had already come together. I would thank Congress leader Adhir Chowdhury for publicly accepting that the BJP and the CPI-M were helping them. How can Congress and the CPI-M fight the BJP and claim themselves to be anti-BJP parties? I would blame the communal card and the hatred politics for TMC's defeat. The BJP always plays the communal card but this time both the Congress and the TMC joined in," Banerjee said.

Banerjee said the Sagardighi by-poll result has cautioned people, who are anti-BJP, against trusting the Congress and the CPI-M as they fought together. Meanwhile, the Bengal chief minister lauded the Supreme Court's verdict on independent selection mechanism to appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners. She said it was "a bold verdict" and much needed for saving the country from the clutches of "a few politicians with vendetta politics" who are trying to run the country "through agencies". "Someone must bell the cat. It is a moral victory of the people. TMC has been long pleading for this," Banerjee said.

She alleged that the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids were conducted only on the houses of TMC leaders while Congress and the CPI-M leaders were being spared. "There were so many infamous incidents during the 34-year Left Front regime but no person has ever been questioned. Such questionings and arrests will continue till panchayat polls," she said.

The chief minister has also clarified that TMC will fight all upcoming elections alone and never go in alliance with any party. "TMC will alliance only with the people," she said.