Mamata Banerjee not to attend attend INDIA bloc meeting on June 1
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she won’t attend the INDIA bloc meeting on June 1 in Delhi as she would be busy with elections in the state and due to Cyclone Remal.
Addressing an election
rally in Kolkata, the Trinamool Congress chief said, “INDIA bloc had earlier said they would hold a meeting on June 1. I told them I couldn’t go as we will still have polls here like a few other states. How could I go with cyclone and relief centre on one side and elections on the other?”
“My priority is ensuring relief for the people. I am doing a meeting here, but my heart lies with the affected people,” she added.
Voting will take place on nine seats in West Bengal on June 1, including two seats in Kolkata – Kolkata Dakshin and Kolkata Uttar. Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek will be voting in this phase.
The other constituencies that go to polls in the state include Jadavpur, Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jayanagar, Mathurapur and Diamond Harbour.
The INDIA bloc has called for an all-party meeting on June 1, the day when polling for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections will take place, sources told India Today TV.
All alliance partners of the INDIA bloc have been invited to attend the meeting, which will take place in the national capital 4 days before election results will be announced.
The meeting has been called to review and discuss the coalition’s future course of actions, keeping in mind its performance in the Lok Sabha elections, sources added.
The Trinamool Congress opted out of seat-sharing discussions in West Bengal and saw a bitter war of words with state Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. However, Mamata Banerjee has said she was open to give outside support to the INDIA bloc after results are announced.