Despite victory in Assembly polls, winning Prez polls won't be easy for BJP: Mamata
Kolkata: Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the BJP's recent gains in four states may not still make it easy for the saffron camp in the upcoming Presidential election. Stating that the BJP would not sail through with support from other parties, Banerjee said the "game is not yet over".
"The Presidential elections will take place soon. Without our support, you (BJP) won't sail through. You shouldn't forget that," she added.
She said parties that do not have even half of the total number of legislators in the country should not talk big as parties like the Samajwadi Party, despite defeat in Assembly polls, are stronger electorally than last time. "The Presidential elections will not be that easy for the BJP this time. They don't have even half of the total MLAs in the country. Opposition parties together have more MLAs across the nation," she said in the Assembly.
"The game is not yet over. Even a party like the Samajwadi Party, which lost the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, has more MLAs than it had last time," she said.
The Presidential elections are conducted indirectly through an electoral college consisting of elected members of Parliament and legislative assemblies of states and Union Territories. The number and value of votes of each voter from the state legislatures is worked out by a formula that takes into account the population of the state in 1971.
Banerjee, who has been trying to stitch an anti-BJP front to take on the saffron camp in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, said that the country is preparing to fight the ruling party in the Centre.
While speaking on the Hills and Home Affairs Budget discussion, she lauded the state police for maintaining law and order in the state and rubbished allegations of political violence as "canards spread by the opposition.
Condemning the recent killings of two councillors of Congress and TMC, Banerjee said the police are investigating the matters and stern action will be taken without considering the political affiliation of the culprits.
