'Goa is ready for the fiercest leader of the nation & only woman CM...'

KOLKATA: Amid alleged attempts by the BJP to prevent Trinamool Congress (TMC) from expanding its reach in Goa, party's supremo Mamata Banerjee reached the coastal state on Thursday and was welcomed by the members of her party there.

A tweet on the official account of the party's Goa unit read: "All of #Goa is ready for the FIERCEST leader of this nation, the only sitting woman CM of this country - @MamataOfficial ! A very warm welcome to our Chairperson Smt. Mamata Banerjee!"

Trinamool Congress leaders in Goa also lambasted the BJP for allegedly damaging cut-outs of Banerjee put up in different areas there ahead of her visit to the state.

Earlier, speaking to media persons here on Wednesday, Trinamool's Rajya Sabha member Derek O'Brien had said: "The only woman chief minister (in the country at present) has been insulted. We all know this is not the culture of Goa."

He claimed the BJP was damaging local businesses, as contractors will have to pay from their own pocket for all the vandalised hoardings.

The Trinamool Congress leader said if the BJP wants to fight against his party, then it should do it politically.

Meanwhile, on the day when Banerjee embarked on her three-day visit to Goa, her party on Thursday launched a fresh attack on the Congress, accusing the old party of "limiting itself to Twitter space" instead of firming up an opposition alliance against the BJP.

The party in its mouthpiece 'Jago Bangla' iterated that it would venture out to other states to expand its base and put up a formidable fight against the BJP.

"We want an alliance to be formed against the BJP. We have said this to the Congress, too. But it is least bothered and shows a lackadaisical approach," an editorial in the TMC mouthpiece said.

The editorial in TMC mouthpiece clarified that the party would continue to bolster its strength, while keeping the "doors of alliance with the Congress open".

"We have never said that an opposition alliance will be forged without the Congress. But we will not waste our time by sitting idle," it added.

The Trinamool Congress, of late, has been criticising Congress over its alleged failure to take on the BJP.

Earlier this month, the Mamata Banerjee-led party took a dig at Rahul Gandhi's defeat at Amethi in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, as it wondered if the Congress could erase the setback through a Twitter trend. On reaching Goa, Mamata Banerjee was received by party's Rajya Sabha MP Derek O' Brien and Luizinho Falerio at the

Goa airport.

Later, Banerjee proceeded towards Panaji. There is excitement among party leaders including those who had defected from the BJP over her visit to Goa. Trinamool Congress has opened its party office in Goa and many Congress leaders, including Falerio, two-time Congress Chief Minister and Kishore Narvekar, former Congress vice-president, had joined TMC.

Political experts said the saffron party Goa was facing internal feuds and many leaders had developed contacts with the Trinamool.

BJP leaders in Goa said Trinamool Congress would have to return empty-handed and "shut their shop." Reacting sharply, Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy said TMC would not return empty-handed and those who said so 'were leaving in fools' paradise.'

During her visit, Banerjee is likely to visit the temples and churches in Goa and assess the political situation. There are 40 Assembly seats in Goa. In 2017, Congress got a majority in Goa but BJP went ahead with horse trading and got the support of some Congress MLAs to form the ministry. This has angered the people of Goa, who are not happy with the state government, stated a political expert. Political experts also said that there were more than 11 lakh voters in Goa of which 49 per cent were women.

"Women across the country have respect for Mamata Banerjee for the steps she has taken in Bengal to empower women. With this backdrop, BJP will have a tough time in Goa," they maintained.