"Red light and speed breaker do not mean that the journey ends”: Congress extends an olive branch following Mamata Banerjee’s firm stand on solo Bengal fight

Following West Bengal CM and TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee’s decision to fight solo from Bengal, Congress General Secretary, Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said that the INDIA bloc cannot be “imagined” without Mamata Banerjee and underscored her role as a “key leader” in the alliance.

"You have not read her full statement. Her full statement is she wants to defeat the BJP and for that, she won't take a step back. With this though, we (Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra) are entering West Bengal. When we are on a long journey, speed breaker comes, red light comes," said Jairam Ramesh, speaking on Mamata Banerjee’s announcement. "Red light and speed breaker do not mean that the journey ends. Rahul Gandhi was asked the same question and he said that Mamata Banerjee is a key leader of the INDIA bloc. Mamata ji is also a tall leader of the country, West Bengal, Rahul Gandhi said. We cannot imagine the INDIA bloc without Mamata Banerjee," he added.

Speaking on Mamata Banerjee’s allegation that she was not informed about Congress’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, Jairam Ramesh said that Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge invited all the INDIA alliance partners and welcomed them to join the yatra. He further stated that the seat-sharing equation in Bengal will be solved amicably, and a united opposition front will be formed in Bengal.

Earlier today, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee stated that Trinamool Congress would fight solo from Bengal, and the INDIA alliance would be taken care of after the elections. “It is completely false. There is no talk with Congress over seat sharing. We have decided that TMC will go alone and have no alliance as far as Bengal is concerned. We had proposed a seat-sharing and after they had rejected that, there have been no further talks with us,” asserted the Trinamool Congress Supremo. Mamata Banerjee also stated that she has not been invited to join the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra when the rally will pass through Bengal. “As a matter of courtesy, since we are part of the INDIA bloc, they should have at least informed me about their plans for their yatra in Bengal. They have not invited us,” she added.