Mamata finds support amid rift in Oppn bloc
Hindustan TimesTwo key constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance backed West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday to head the Opposition coalition, adding to the growing call for a shake-up within the bloc that did well in the Lok Sabha polls but has flagged since. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee Earlier in the day, LoP Rahul Gandhi told a group of party lawmakers not to pay attention to what second-rung leaders of the INDIA group parties are saying and said that the Congress is capable of handling the issues in the alliance. Mamata Banerjee, Uddhav Thackeray, Lalu Prasad, Sharad Pawar or Akhilesh Yadav,” he said, adding that even Biju Janata Dal chief Naveen Patnaik, whose party is not a part of the bloc, can join the alliance. Former Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Trinamool Congress is raising the leadership issue in the INDIA bloc since the day Congress leader Rahul Gandhi raised questions on the Modi government’s link with the Adani Group. Congress MP Manickam Tagore called the suggestion a ‘big joke’ and Bihar Congress chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh on Monday said that Banerjee’s party was limited to West Bengal.