Mamata woos Left Front partners of the CPI-M

October 1st, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Thursday accused the Congress of breaching the rules of alliance politics, hours after the latter formed the civic board in the Siliguri Municipal Corporation with support from the West Bengal's ruling Left Front (LF). The Left Front, led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), is a staunch opponent of the Trinamool Congress, a coalition partner of the Congress in the central government.

June 21st, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Sunday asked the central government to declare three West Bengal districts of West Mindapore, Bankura and Purulia as disturbed area and initiate measures for restoring peace and giving relief to people. Speaking at a party programme here, Banerjee said opposition parties and the masses did not have faith in the state's Left Front government.

May 24th, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Sunday alleged that after its debacle in the Lok Sabha elections, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) that leads West Bengal's Left Front government was unleashing violence on her party's workers. She said cadres of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which leads the Left Front, torched the houses of nearly 150 Trinamool workers at Raina in Burdwan district.

May 18th, 2009 KOLKATA - A triumphant Trinamool Congress Monday passed a resolution informing President Pratibha Patil of its support to a Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre and said their backing was unconditional. The resolution was passed at a meeting of the Trinamool parliamentary party in which all the 19 newly elected Lok Sabha MPs, including its chief Mamata Banerjee, were present.

May 18th, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Monday said all Left parties are 'not bad', in what is seen as an overture to some partners of West Bengal's ruling Left Front which has suffered major reverses in the 2009 Lok sabha polls. 'We have said the Left is not bad.

May 17th, 2009 KOLKATA - After the electoral drubbing to the ruling Left front in West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress Sunday reiterated that it wants early assembly elections held in the state. It also said it was confident that the Congress would have the party 'on board' in the new United Progressive Alliance government.

May 10th, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Sunday said Maoist guerrillas of West Bengal were dummies planted by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) to split the anti-Left votes in the state. 'The so-called Maoists are nothing but dummy organisations of the CPI-M in the state.

May 3rd, 2009 KOLKATA - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sunday accused Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee of indulging in shadow-boxing against West Bengal's ruling Left Front in the company of the Congress. Referring to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's media interviews in which he has said that the Congress was open to a post-poll alliance with the Left, BJP national spokesperson S.S.

April 22nd, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamul Congress leader Mamata Banerjee filed her nomination for the South Kolkata parliamentary constituency on Wednesday. Her main CPI (M) opponent, Rabin Deb also filed his nomination today.

April 12th, 2009 NEW DELHI - It was an unusual sight. Residents of South Kolkata were startled to find hundreds of Mamata Banerjees walking in a procession, canvassing for votes for the Trinamool Congress chief.

April 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - It was a rare occasion when 'didi' saw something good in the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led Left Front in West Bengal. 'The Left Front ran the state more or less properly from 1977 till 1984 or 1987.

March 27th, 2009 KOLKATA - Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Friday charged her former ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with having put up candidates in all the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal in order to help the state's ruling Left Front. Banerjee also accused the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) of having blackmailed the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre every now and then for enjoying the loaves of office during the time it provided outside support.

March 12th, 2009 KOLKATA - Conceding that there were 'shortcomings' in the Left Front government's land reforms programme, West Bengal's Transport and Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty Wednesday said the front would have to make way for an improved alternative in due course of time. 'There are some shortcomings in our land reforms project.

March 3rd, 2009 KOLKATA - The ruling Left Front partners in West Bengal Monday said the electoral tie-up between the Congress and the Trinamool Congress in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls would pose a formidable challenge to the communists parties who have been ruling the state uninterrupted since 1977. 'It'll definitely be a tough challenge for all the Left Front partners in the coming election if the Congress and Trinamool form an alliance and fight unitedly against the communists in the Lok Sabha election,' Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) central committee member Binoy Konar told IANS Monday.

March 2nd, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal state Congress president Pranab Mukherjee and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Sunday night held talks to forge an alliance between the two parties for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Senior Congress leader K.