After Congress, it seems the Trinamool Congress has rubbed Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party the wrong way. The Delhi chief minister, who is in Goa to further his party’s agenda ahead of the 2022 elections, on Wednesday tore into the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, which is leaving no stone unturned to expand its footprint across the country and has set its eyes on Goa.
Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said: “I think you people give a lot of importance to TMC. I think TMC doesn’t have even a 1% vote share as of now. It came to Goa only 3 months back, democracy doesn’t work like this. You need to work hard, you need to work among people.” He added, “You might give a lot of importance to TMC but I don’t think it stands anywhere in the race.”
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The uncharacteristic outburst comes just weeks after Kejriwal referred to Banerjee as his “elder sister” and said, “even if she fights elections against me or slaps me I will not stop respecting her. I am not concerned with who leads the opposition but our country should benefit”. It is also only in Goa where the AAP and Trinamool have come face-to-face, with Mamata Banerjee’s party posing a direct threat to the Congress with which it shares a blow-hot, blow-cold relationship.
In contrast, Banerjee and Kejriwal are known to share bonhomie. In June 2018, when Kejriwal was leading a dharna with his ministers, accusing lieutenant governor (L-G) Anil Baijal of interfering in Delhi’s governance, Banerjee was among the CMs to meet his family to express solidarity in his fight against the BJP-led Union government, which appoints the L-G. The two have also participated in election rallies of one another and publicly expressed support on numerous occasions. The two leaders last met on 28 July, during one of Banerjee’s visits to Delhi. While Kejriwal announced in January that the AAP will be contesting polls in Goa, Banerjee made her plans public in September.
