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Following West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's declaration of contesting the 2026 state assembly polls alone, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday stated that the Trinamool leader had always contested "independently," be it the Lok Sabha or the State Assembly.
During a press conference in the national capital, the Shiv Sena (UBT) MP said that despite this decision of Banerjee to cut ties with the INDIA bloc in the state, she should continue to have "dialogue" with the Congress as the party is a big part of the alliance. "Mamata Banerjee has always fought independently--be it Lok Sabha or Vidhan Sabha. Congress is a big part of the INDIA alliance and she should always continue to have dialogue with Congress," Raut said. Speaking on the meeting between Punjab AAP MLAs and party leader Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi following the loss in the recently concluded Delhi polls, Raut said it is an internal matter for the AAP to handle. "AAP is governing Punjab and the party high command is in Delhi. What's wrong with calling a party meeting to work on strategies for the betterment of the party? What's wrong with it? It's their party's internal matter," he added. Meanwhile, on the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) investigation into AAP's allegations of horse-trading against the BJP, Raut remarked that such issues have been present in various states and should be closely examined. "They have just won the elections. The investigations have just begun. Money plays a big role in elections. We have seen it in Maharashtra; it must have happened in Delhi as well," Raut stated. Earlier on Thursday, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is trying to poach the candidates of AAP, offering them Rs 15 crore each. BJP has vehemently denied the allegations. "Some agencies are showing that the 'Gali Galoch party' (referring to the BJP) is getting more than 55 seats. In the last two hours, 16 of our candidates have received calls that if they leave AAP and join their party, they will make them ministers and will give Rs. 15 crores to each of them," Kejriwal said. Meanwhile, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena's principal secretary has written to the Chief Secretary of the Delhi government to conduct an ACB inquiry on allegations of bribes offered to MLAs of the Aam Aadmi Party. (ANI)
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