New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi’s blistering attack on the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) government was meant to shore up the Congress party’s electoral prospects in West Bengal, said party leaders. But, it has widened the fault lines in the INDIA bloc, raising fresh questions over opposition unity.
Several key INDIA bloc constituents, including RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, Hemant Soren of the JMM, and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal joined TMC’s campaign trail in West Bengal to canvass voters, signalling a broader consolidation of regional forces behind Banerjee. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav extended support on social media though he didn’t travel to the poll-bound state.
Political observers ThePrint spoke to said the Opposition’s show of support for Mamata Banerjee should serve as a cautionary tale for Rahul Gandhi—the INDIA bloc remains functional but the Congress appears increasingly sidelined within.
Rasheed Kidwai, a political analyst who has tracked the Congress for over four decades, described Rahul Gandhi’s strategy in West Bengal as ‘naive’.
“This was not smart politics, this is the time when he was not supposed to speak. He’s being naive, he’s ill-advised; Congress has only 99 [Lok Sabha] MPs right now, they can’t afford to sever ties with all regional players,” said Kidwai.
The Congress is contesting all 294 seats in West Bengal, but its hopes rest on a few pockets like Murshidabad, Malda and Uttar Dinajpur, where there is a significant Muslim population and some support for the Congress.
The Congress contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and 2021 Assembly elections in West Bengal in alliance with the Left but is going solo this time.
“When elections come, Modi ji mocks Mamata ji, but remains silent after elections. The reason is that he knows only one force counters BJP and RSS, and that is the Congress,” Gandhi had said Saturday in Hooghly. He accused Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of paving the way for the BJP in Bengal. “If Mamata ji had not encouraged corruption and had taken action in cases such as the rape and murder at R.G. Kar Hospital, there wouldn’t have been any threat from the BJP,” he said.
He also alleged that the Trinamool Congress does not put up a real fight against the BJP and is therefore shielded from action by investigative agencies, positioning the Congress as the only force of change in West Bengal. “How many cases has Modi ji filed against Mamata ji? How many hours has she faced interrogations? But I was interrogated by ED for 55 hours in five days in a row. Why are no attacks made against Mamata ji? Because she never fights against the BJP,” he said.
A senior Trinamool Congress leader told ThePrint that Rahul Gandhi’s remarks “barely matter” and that the Congress has little presence and no future in the state.
Mamata Banerjee had previously made it clear that while the INDIA bloc exists to counter the BJP in Parliament, the Trinamool Congress will go it alone in West Bengal, ruling out any alliance with the Congress in the state.
“At all-India level I’m part of the INDIA alliance. The INDIA alliance was my brainchild. We’re together at the national level and will continue to be together, But, don’t count on the CPI(M) and the Congress in Bengal. They’re not with us, they are with the BJP here. I’m talking about that [INDIA bloc] in Delhi,” she said at a public meeting in Tamluk in May 2024.
TMC leader Kunal Ghosh echoed Rahul Gandhi’s words but to attack him. He alleged that Rahul was “working for the BJP,” adding that he has failed to counter the party in key states and is now indirectly aiding it in West Bengal.
“Rahul Gandhi is cheating. It was his responsibility to stop the BJP in Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana and Bihar but he failed. Where the TMC is defeating them [BJP], he’s coming here to help create an advantage for the BJP and is working for them,” Ghosh told ANI Sunday.
The Congress currently has just one MP from West Bengal, Isha Khan Choudhury who represents Maldaha Dakshin, and no presence in the Legislative Assembly.
“Rahul knows that Congress has no chance in Bengal but these statements are to remain relevant; he’s ensuring he positions his party away from the key players— BJP and TMC,” said political analyst Professor Chandrachud Singh.
According to political experts ThePrint spoke to, targeting the TMC could prove counterproductive for the Congress. “If the Mamata government collapses, the benefits will be reaped by BJP, not the Congress. In states like Andhra Pradesh and Delhi, the fall of regional parties has helped BJP, not the Congress. The Congress has never gained by attacking regional parties, this is not smart,” said Kidwai.
Kidwai added that the Congress’s political strategy appears “confusing,” as there is little ideological difference between it and the Trinamool Congress. “Their politics and manifestos broadly align—if Mamata is accused of Muslim appeasement, so is Congress; they’re cut from the same cloth. The Congress will need the support of the regional parties in 2029; they have already lost out on JDU and TDP,” he said.
However, Speaking to ThePrint, Congress leader and former Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury defended Rahul Gandhi’s remarks, saying he is aware of the political realities and speaking accordingly.
“The Congress is not really a player in the Bengal elections, they are making statements largely to signal their presence. Historically, they have fought against the Left in Kerala and the TMC in Bengal, but that does not mean they won’t return to the INDIA bloc by 2029,” said Harish S. Wankhede, faculty at the Centre for Political Studies, JNU.
He added, “It [INDIA bloc] will remain a Congress-led alliance, Congress is the ‘elder brother’ and will have to accommodate regional parties within the bloc; there is no alternative. At the moment, Rahul Gandhi’s stance appears driven by political compulsion.”
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also Read: Writings on the wall: Bengal’s epitaph for Left is, I let doctrine become dogma, ideology obstacle