A day after siding with the Congress in the Parliament to support a no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government; Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress poached five Congress MLAs in West Bengal.

The five Congress MLAs, who were present at the Martyrs’ Day programme in Kolkata on Saturday, comes from the party’s stronghold of Malda and Murshidabad. Martyrs’ Day is considered to be the ruling Trinamool’s big bang day organised on July 21 every year.

Also siding with Banerjee were former BJP MP Chandan Mitra and expelled CPM Rajya Sabha MP, Ritabrata Banerjee.

Target 42 seats

The Trinamool has been able to poach nearly two dozen Opposition members during its first term in power ending 2016.

In the second term, there have been at least 17 defections from the Congress. Except one, none of the other 16 MLAs have tendered their resignations so as to bypass the anti-defection laws. Post the 2016 general elections, there has been one defection from the CPM too.

“We have to win all 42 (MP) seats from Bengal in the upcoming 2019 elections. It is our pledge and we have to oust the BJP,” Banerjee said. Trinamool currently has 34 seats in the Lok Sabha.

The West Bengal Chief Minister made it clear that the Congress needs to have a uniform policy and cannot seek the Trinamool’s support at the Centre; while the party’s West Bengal unit acts as the principal Opposition in Bengal.

“It is for the Congress to decide what it wants. But, it cannot keep seeking our support at the Centre and then be the principal opposition party in Bengal,” Banerjee said alleging that the CPM, Congress and BJP had ganged up during the Panchayat elections held earlier this year.

Federal Front

Making clear her national ambitions, Banerjee said that a meeting of the Federal Front – comprising of anti-BJP parties – will be held in Kolkata in January 2019. The rallywill be a show of strength of parties that intend to dislodge the BJP.

“The BJP’s tally will be be down 2019. They should be lucky to end up winning 100-odd seats,” she said pointing out that regional parties will be the king-maker.

Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD would be the key player in Bihar and BJD will be the king-maker in Odisha.

In North India, a SP-BSP combine would lead to a drastic reduction of BJP’s seats – to one-fourth of its current numbers – in Uttar Pradesh; while for Rajasthan and MP, anti-incumbency will play a key role. In Punjab, Amrinder Singh of Congress will be determining factor.

Down south, Karunanidhi’s DMK will be the all important factor; while former allies of BJP that include Chandra Babu Naidu’s TDP and KCR’s Telangana Rashtriya Samity are the parties to watch out for in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

In the Western parts, Shiv Sena and other players will play a key role for Maharashtra; while the BJP will fail to make any significant mark in Gujarat.

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