West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee wrote to fifteen key opposition leaders including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi Wednesday, suggesting a big get-together for a strategy to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party after the current round of assembly polls.
Besides Sonia Gandhi, the letter was sent to Natinalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, DMK’s Stalin, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy, BJD chief Naveen Patnaik, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s Hemant Soren, Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K Chandrashekar Rao, Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Jana Dal’s Tejaswi Yadav and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal, National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah and Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti.
In the letter, Mamata said that in states governed by non-BJP parties, the BJP-led Centre is creating problems for duly elected government by misusing governor’s office.
“The BJP wants to make it impossible for non-BJP parties to exercise their constitutional rights and freedoms. It wants to dilute the powers of the state governments and downgrade them to mere municipalties. In short, it wants to establish a one-party authoritarian rule in India,” read the letter.
Mamata also wrote about the lack of funds given to state governments as well as the shrinking space for them to voice the needs of their people.
The passage of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) (GNCTD) Bill is a grave development and the BJP has snatched practically all powers of a democratically elected government, Mamata accused.
“I strongly believe that the time has come for a united and effective struggle against BJP’s attacks on democracy and the constitution… As the chairperson of TMC, I shall work wholeheartedly with you and all other like-minded parties in this battle,” CM wrote.
West Bengal CM also said that talks on forming an anti-BJP alliance should be held after the assembly elections.
