Bengal Congress chief accuses LF partner of taking money from Trinamool

Kolkata, March 25: Already beseeched with problems, the Congress-Left Front poll understanding in West Bengal received a setback on Saturday, as the state Congress chief accused a LF partner of putting up candidate in Murshidabad in exchange of money from the ruling Trinamool Congress.

State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's ire was directed at LF constituent All India Forward Bloc, which put up a candidate in the Murshidabad constituency of the homonymous district.

"They have taken money from the Trinamool and put up a candidate to put the Trinamool at an advantage,' said an angry Chowdhury.

Left Front chairman Biman Bose had on Thursday announced Bivas Chakraborty's name as the candidate nominated by the coalition from Murshidabad. Congress has also announced it would contest from the seat. Murshidabad is considered the pocket borough of Chowdhury hails and a stronghold of the Congress.

Chowdhury, one of the earlier proponents of a Congress-Left alliance in the state to take on the Trinamool in the coming polls, has been peeved for quite some time over the large number of triangular fights in his district, with the LF constituents pitching candidates in most of the seats against the Congress.

Reacting to Chowdhury's outburst, AIFB leader Naren Chatterjee said: "He is a senior leader. he is not a mere district level leader, but the head of the Congress in the state. I hope he will reconsider what he has said."

Chatterjee said the issue would be taken up in the LF. "Chakraborty is not merely an AIFB candidate, but the nominee of the LF announced by Bose.

Top AIFB leaders rushed to the CPI-M state headquarters Alimuddin street during the day to discuss the development.

The AIFB is also disturbed over the reported support being given by the grassroot level Marxist cadres to Congress candidates at several constituencies where AIFB nominees are also in fray.

Meanwhile, another LF constituent the Communist Party of India hoped the dispute over 20-22 seats between Congress and the Left would be resolved in the coming days.

"There is some dispute over 20-22 seats. That won't have any effect on the Congress-LF understanding. We are confident about resolving the dispute".

IANS