No alliance with Trinamool, says Congress

The Congress yesterday ruled out an alliance with the Trinamool Congress, and demanded the deployment of central paramilitary forces for the peaceful conduct of rural body polls in West Bengal.

“We have learnt our lessons from our previous alliance with the Trinamool. You don’t repeat the same mistake over and over. We want to make it clear that the Congress will be contesting the panchayat polls alone. We are fully prepared and firm on our decision,” state Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya said here.

Conceding that the Congress was relegated to the third position behind the Trinamool and the Left Front in the 2011 assembly polls in the state, Bhattacharya said his party was now in the reckoning in the wake of the recently concluded by-elections in three constituencies.

“In the assembly polls, the contest was only between the Trinamool and the Left Front. But in the by-elections, there has been parity between all the three major forces. Our result in the by-elections has not been so bad as to seek an alliance with any party,” he said. The Trinamool, Left Front and the Congress bagged one seat each in the February 23 assembly by-elections.