Speculations about Banerjee leading an alliance of anti-BJP parties have been strong due to her active initiative meeting the top leaders in the opposition to stitch an alliance of like-minded parties.
(Representational Image: IANS)
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is being propped as the prime ministerial candidate of the yet to be formed grand alliance, brushed aside talks saying that her aim is to oust the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from power.
Talking to reporters in New Delhi on Wednesday, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief said that she is a “nobody”.
“I am a very simple worker. Let me just continue as a commoner. I want that this [BJP] government to go. They are doing maximum political vendetta and atrocities with the people. Let us work together and not think of Prime Ministerial candidate. Think of the country,” she told the media in Parliament House.
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Speculations about Banerjee leading an alliance of anti-BJP parties have been strong due to her active initiative meeting the top leaders in the opposition to stitch an alliance of like-minded parties.
Reports say that Congress president Rahul Gandhi, too, is not averse to the idea of Banerjee becoming the PM face though he had himself claimed eligibility for the post during the Karnataka elections.
In Delhi for three days to invite opposition leaders to her mega-rally on 19 January in Kolkata, Banerjee had slammed the BJP on Tuesday over the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam which does not carry the names of 40 lakh people stating that the situation will lead to “a civil war, bloodbath in the country”.
As the BJP expressed shock at her “bloodbath” comment and a police complaint was filed against her in Assam’s Dibrugarh district, Banerjee said that she was referring to the BJP creating the situation of bloodbath.
“I am not BJP’s servant to reply to any of their statements. I didn’t make the ‘bloodbath’ statement. BJP is politically tensed because they know they won’t come to power in 2019,” she said.
Responding to BJP President Amit Shah’s statement that he would be going to West Bengal to address a rally on 11 August, she said, “Let him go. Let him go all the 365 days. Bengal is for everybody. Bengal welcomes everybody. It is their party problem.”
Though she aims to take on the BJP, Banerjee met senior BJP leader LK Advani today out of “courtesy”.
“I have been a Member of Parliament for seven times. I have maintained best of relations with all. And it is a kind of courtesy meeting,” she said.
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