The BJP strongly rejected Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s charge that it has entered into a clandestine agreement with the CPI(M) to divide anti-Left vote. “Ms Banerjee is worried about the growing strength of the BJP in the state which is why she has been trying to associate us with the Left Front. Baseless claims are
being made on the BJP strengthening the Left Front. The BJP and the Left Front are ideologically opposite parties and will remain so forever,” senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley said at a news conference here in the city on Friday.
He explained that the BJP was a small party which was using Bengal Assembly election as a launching pad to increase its vote share and further strengthen its position in the state. He said that earlier the BJP did not attach much importance to Ms Banerjee’s charge. “Mamataji was an ally of the BJP in earlier elections. There must be some political compulsions due to which she has been making such comments,” BJP general secretary added.
Mr Jaitley totally ruled out any possibility of BJP extending support to the Trinamul Congress to form a government after the election. Echoing the CPI(M)’s charge, he also expressed concerns over the new wealth of the Trinamul Congress. “In Assam they are a small party but the expenses they ran during the campaigning raised many eyebrows. They have either acquired a new set of resources or resourceful friends,” he added.
In an apparent insinuation to Ms Mamata Banerjee’s nexus with the Maoists, Mr Jaitley, who had in Parliament raised the issue in the past, said, “Bengal is in a mood for ushering in a change but this change should not be from Marxism to Maoism.”