Mamata Banerjee's onslaught sends Congress in two states on damage control

KOLKATA: Mamata Banerjee has virtually forced both Bengal and Tripura Congress to launch damage control exercise to make their presence felt in the two states. While the Congress in Tripura has already held a bandh in Agartala last week and also planned to launch a state-wide movement against CPIM-led government, Congress in Bengal is busy holding closed door meetings with party MLAs and councillors to stop large-scale exodus.

In both the states, Congress is facing huge challenges from Trinamoool Congress in keeping their organisation in tact and move taken by the party in Tripura and Bengal is being viewed as their damage control exercise to check largescale exodus. Trinamool Congress has become principal opposition party in Tripura after six of the total ten Congress MLAs joined Trinamool. Mamate herself held a meeting at Agartala, the state capital of Tripura on August 9 and had got a tremendous response from the people. After Mamata's rally, Tripura Congress has realised that it would be difficult for them to exist in the Marxist-ruled state.

Tripura Congress has swung into action to keep the organisation alive and held a bandh at Agartala on August 12, three days after Mamata's rally. The party has also planned to organise state-wide movement against the CPI (M) government, which the Congress claimed, has allowed unscrupulous chit fund owners to flee the state after siphoning off poor peoples money.

The Congress held a bandh at Agartala, the state capital of Tripura last week opposing Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC)'s move to enhance the wealth tax. "We got unexpected support from the people of Agartala during the bandh on August 12. We wanted the CPIM-led government to hold an allparty meeting to discuss the issue of enhancing the wealth tax. But the government ignored our plea and the AMC has issued a notice recently in regard to increase of the tax. We have decided to go for a state-wide movement if the CPI(M) government goes on enhancing the tax," Birajit Sinha, Tripura state Congress president, told ET on Wednesday .

Sinha also informed that they will intensify their stir against the state government which, he claimed, had helped owners of hundreds of chit fund companies to flee after duping about 14 lakh people of Tripura. "If Madan Mitra, who was a minister of Mamata Banerjee's government could be arrested in connection with Saradha scam, why our chief minister Manik Sarkar would be allowed to run the state? It is the CPIM government under his leadership which had helped several chit fund owners to escape after siphoning off poor people's money. We will run statewide campaign against the CPI(M)," claimed Sinha.