The leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Tuesday cautioned Congress leaders against rejoicing in the drubbing the Trinamool Congress had received in the Bengal Assembly polls.
"Some in the Congress, and others, are gloating about TMC’s loss. They need to understand this clearly-- the theft of Assam and Bengal’s mandate is a big step forward by the BJP in its mission to destroy Indian democracy. Put petty politics aside. This is not about one party or another. This is about [Indian flag emoji]," Rahul wrote on X.
Outgoing Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had parted ways with the Congress in 1998, saying the party was not confronting the CPM directly, and formed the Trinamool Congress.
She aligned with the Congress to defeat the Left in 2011. This alliance was short-lived.
Trinamool is now a constituent of the INDIA bloc.
Trinamool and the Congress fought against each other in the just-concluded Assembly polls.
At an election rally in Raiganj on April 14, Rahul had said: "If the TMC had done its job, the BJP could not have made inroads here. It is because of the TMC that the BJP got the opportunity to get into Bengal."
On April 22, on the eve of the first phase of polling, Rahul said in a video message: “If Mamata ji had run a clean government, if she hadn’t polarised the state to this extent, the road would not have been cleared for the BJP."
He said at a rally in Sreerampur on April 25: "For how many hours was Mamata Banerjee interrogated (by central agencies)?... This is because she does not fight the BJP directly."