Complimenting veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani on his resignation from the party’s key posts, West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee president Pradip Bhattacharya said here on Monday that the “revolt” against communal leadership would spread to other parts of the country.
Referring to Mr. Advani as an “iron man,” Mr. Bhattacharya welcomed his opposition to the “mascot of communal politics,” a reference to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. The person who helped establish BJP was hurt and took the decision after being sidelined, the PCC president said. Referring to the recent by-election for the Howrah Lok Sabha seat, he said the Trinamool Congress won the seat on the “strength of Modi.”
The BJP withdrew its candidate at the last moment, a move that proved to be an advantage for the Trinamool candidate, who won by a 27,000 vote margin. The Trinamool, Mr. Bhattacharya said, was likely to forge an alliance with the BJP and return to the National Democratic Alliance.