After tie-up,Pranab,Mamata to tie loose ends

Besides discussing strategies to resolve the differences,the two leaders will also constitute a joint committee for elections. “We are fighting together against the CPM in Bengal. Therefore,we felt the need to form a joint campaign committee for 42 Lok Sabha seats in Bengal. A proposal in this regard has already been sent to party president Sonia Gandhi for her approval,” said Manas Bhunia,leader of the Congress legislative party in the Assembly.

The proposed committee will operate at the district and the block level. Leaders of both parties will jointly organise rallies,street meetings and other modes of poll campaign. The message to be delivered to the mass will also be decided jointly.

“We welcome the proposal. The matter will be discussed in the meeting between Banerjee and Mukherjee,” said Trinamool leader Partho Chatterjee.

The two leaders are expected to also discuss non-cooperation between workers of both parties in some areas. Though the alliance between the two has been working well in many areas,in others Congress workers refused to side up with Trinamool candidates.

In Krishnagar,cine star and Trinamool candidate Tapas Pal had to take a break from campaigning and meet Congress leader and chairman of Krishnagar municipality Asim Saha,who stated that he had received no instruction from the district leadership to cooperate with the Trinamool.

Similarly,Congress workers refused to cooperate with Trinamool candidate from Ranaghat Sucharu Haldar.

Congress workers are also not keen to campaign for Somen Mitra and Sudip Bandopadhyay,who had left Congress recently and are contesting from Diamond Harbour and Kolkata North constituency respectively on a Trinamool ticket.

On the other hand,Trinamool leader from North Dinajpur Abdul Karim Choudhury refused to cooperate with Congress candidate Deepa Dasmunsi.

Mukherjee is scheduled to reach Kolkata on March 18 and will later visit his constituency in Jangipur. “Pranabda will address party workers that evening in Jangipur,initiating his poll campaign,” said a senior Congress leader from Jangipur.

The Congress has so far announced only 11 candidates in Bengal and is yet to declare candidates for seats like Malda (North),Darjeeling and Murshidabad.

Cong taunts CPM over Maya
With CPM general secretary Prakash Karat making common cause with Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati in forming a Third Front,Congress leader Manas Bhunia today asked Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in the Assembly whether he supported the move.

“In order to oppose the Congress,the CPM is surrendering to Mayawati,are you supporting this move?” Bhunia,leader of the Congress legislature party,asked Bhattacharjee,also a CPM politburo member,while speaking on the address of Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi in the House.

Saying this would only help the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls,Bhunia pointed out that in the past the CPM had supported the saffron party for its “blind anti-Congressism”.