Delhi Dreams: Bengal State Chief Banerjee to Expand Party Base Ahead of Crucial Elections

West Bengal state chief and Trinamool Congress (TMC) head Mamata Banerjee has, in the past, tried to bring opposition parties into coalition to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, this time Banerjee's partymen have openly declared her as the only opponent to Modi for the 2024 Parliamentary Elections.

In the run-up to the state legislative assembly elections in India, the chief of West Bengal state, Mamata Banerjee, is going to try to expand her party's base in the country with a rally held virtually on 21 July. Her party, Trinamool Congress (TMC), recently achieved a victory which humiliated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP in state polls. 

Banerjee, who is also gearing up for the 2024 parliamentary elections, will have her speech on Wednesday telecast across the country, especially in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, Assam, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and the national capital Delhi. The speech will be aired in whatever language is spoken in each state.

The Trinamool Congress regards 21 July as Martyrs' Day to commemorate the death of 13 Youth Congress workers from police fire during a public rally in 1993. Before she founded the TMC, Mamata was a member of Congress. 

“It is time to take the fight with the Bharatiya Janata Party beyond West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee is the only opponent strong enough to take Narendra Modi on. We will expand our party base even in Modi’s home state Gujarat where there is insignificant opposition. We will contest all the upcoming state elections,” TMC sources told Sputnik.

Banerjee will be in New Delhi on a five-day visit from 25 July during the Monsoon Session of Parliament where she is scheduled to hold meetings with other opposition leaders.

The TMC head had earlier tried to bring various political parties together to fight Prime Minister Modi in 2019. In a show of strength before the general elections, Banerjee had managed to bring most of the opposition leaders, including Tamil Nadu state chief Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Govindrao Pawar on the same platform in Kolkata city. 

“Didi [Mamata Banerjee's nickname] will become prime minister in 2024. The country knows how TMC is the only competition to the BJP. The party leaders have chalked out an elaborate plan to enter national politics and we will be successful at that,” Madan Mitra, a state legislator from TMC, told Sputnik on Tuesday.

Sources confirmed that Congress leader Shatrughan Sinha, Rajib Banerjee (who has recently moved from TMC to BJP) are among those likely to join the TMC on Wednesday.

Banerjee took the oath as state chief for the third time in May after securing winning 213 out of the 292 assembly seats.