Cong Fighting Two ‘Devil’ Forces: Adhir Chowdhury on WB Elections

Congress’ Lok Sabha MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury says that the Left-Congress alliance in WB is a force to reckon with.

Congress’ Lok Sabha MP and West Bengal Chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

(Photo: Debayan Dutta/The Quint)

Video Editor: Sandeep Suman

Congress’ Lok Sabha MP and West Bengal chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury envisions his party’s fight against the BJP and the ruling TMC as “a fight against two devil forces.”

He claims that his party’s alliance with the Left will make them a force to reckon with in the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

This comes in the backdrop of Chowdhury’s formal announcement of the Left-Congress alliance, along with the declaration that Abbas Siddiqui’s Indian Secular Front, the RJD and the NCP will also be joining hands with them. 

While he is aware that the battle will be tough, especially when it comes to bringing back all those voters who had gone for the BJP in the 2019 elections, he says that “voters are not a party’s fixed asset.”

Chowdhury further asserts that what happened in 2019 might be a “transient feature” and “can be restored.”

Chowdhury, when asked to choose the bigger enemy between the TMC and the BJP in Bengal, says that both parties share an identical DNA, comprised of “throttling the Opposition”, committing “atrocities” and employing “communal politics.”

He further added that he is confident about the success of the Left-Congress alliance in Bengal.

Despite their history of not having worked out well in 2016, he believes that since they have started to forge the alliance and discuss their strategies early on, their alliance will be successful.

“We are stitching the alliance not with the objective of playing second fiddle to anyone, but to wrest power in West Bengal.”

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Congress MP

The Left-Congress alliance is yet to decide the seat-sharing on at least 100 seats. In addition to that, a potential alliance with Abbas Siddiqui’s Indian Secular Front is also in the works, which can play an important role in the West Bengal elections.

Attacking CM Mamata Banerjee, Chowdhury alleged that she is responsible for “laying out a red carpet” for the BJP in Bengal. He added that she had taken the BJP’s help to diminish the Left and Congress cadre.

“Mamata Banerjee started playing communal politics in Bengal through Muslim appeasement. Now, the BJP is paying her back in her own coin.”

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Congress MP

Chowdhury believes that now, she has to “pass the buck to some other political party, and that party is the Left-Congress alliance.” That is why, he adds, she has started using the same formula as the BJP, of accusing the alliance of being BJP’s ‘B team’.