West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is on a three-day visit to Maharashtra, launched a scathing attack on the Congress saying “there is no UPA”.
Mamata gave this statement after meeting NCP chief Sharad Pawar.
“A firm alternative course should be made as nobody’s fighting against ongoing fascism. Sharad Ji is the seniormost leader and I came to discuss our political parties. I agree with whatever Sharad Ji said,” she said.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar when asked if Congress will be a part of the anti-BJP front, he said that be it Congress or any other party, those who are against BJP, if they all come together, then they are welcome.
‘Strong alternative to leadership is needed’
Pawar further said that a strong alternative to leadership is needed.
“Our thinking is not for today, but for election. This has to be established and with that intention, she has visited and had a very positive discussion with all of us,” he added.
This comes after she said that it will be easy to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) if all the regional parties come together.
On Tuesday, Banerjee had met Maharashtra Minister Aaditya Thackeray and Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut. Mamata Banerjee arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday evening and was slated to meet Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar.
After the meeting with Mamata Banerjee, Shiv Sena MLA Aaditya Thackeray said – “We welcome her to Mumbai and Maharashtra. There has always been a friendship. We had met her even 2-3 years back when she visited Mumbai. We came to carry forward that friendship. We discussed many issues but we came here to welcome her to Mumbai.”
Uddhav Thackeray unable to meet due to health issues
While Mamata Banerjee was slated to hold a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, the same could not take place as Thackeray has been down with health issues. “Due to health issues, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray won’t be meeting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during her two-day visit to Mumbai. She has earlier announced that she will be meeting CM over several issues,” a statement from Thackeray’s office said.
Mamata Banerjee will be meeting NCP chief Sharad Pawar at his residence Silver Oak in Mumbai at 3 pm on Wednesday. She is also slated to hold a meeting with the business fraternity in Mumbai and extend an invitation to business leaders for the Bengal Global Business Summit in April 2022.
Last week Mamata Banerjee met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi but skipped meeting Congress working president Sonia Gandhi amid a fresh feud between the two parties. Banerjee’s meetings are being viewed as an attempt to create a national presence ahead of the Lok Sabha elections 2024.
