West Bengal polls: Left leaders, Rahul will share stage

In a sign of their bond deepening, Left Front leaders will share the stage with Rahul Gandhi at a public meeting on April 2. The announcement came at a joint press conference by district leaders of the Congress, the CPM, the RSP and the Forward Bloc.

“Rahul will address a rally each in Bankura, Kulti and Durgapur. For Bankura, we are trying to get state CPM secretary Surya Kanta Mishra to attend,” said Nilmadhab Gupta, district Congress president, in the presence of district leaders Pratip Mukherjee (CPM), Bhaskar Sinha (CPI), Ganga Gowami (RSP) and Anath Mallo (FB). As it turned out, Surya Kanta will not attend. Former MP Bansa Gopal Chowdhury and state secretariat member Gauranga Chatterjee will be at Rahul’s meeting. Though there is no formal alliance, there have been several joint rallies. The state Congress has issued a statement that wherever the Congress is not contesting, its workers would support the Left candidate.