Was keen on alliance with Congress, even went to meet Rahul Gandhi at 6 am: TMC's Abhishek

Senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday said his party was keen on an alliance with the Congress, and because of that he went to meet Rahul Gandhi at his residence at 6 am.

Abhishek, the nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and heir apparent, claimed that TMC candidates are the true representatives of the INDIA bloc in West Bengal.

"Had I not been serious, I would not have rushed to Rahul Gandhi's residence in Delhi at 6 am. We were willing to have an alliance with the Congress in Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal, and despite state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Choudhury's barbs at our party for months we did not react for a long time," he said.

"We gave Congress time till December but we cannot wait indefinitely as we have to make preparations. Till December 31, 2023, not a single spokesperson of our party, including Mamata Banerjee, reacted to what Choudhury was saying," he added.

Banerjee, the MP of Diamond Harbour, said the seat-sharing talks failed because of the state Congress's belligerence.