Mamata Banerjee to chalk out poll strategy

Come November 28 and West Bengal chief minister and Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee will start chairing preliminary rounds of district-wise organisational meetings with party leaders to chalk out the strategy for the coming Assembly election in the state. “Didi has decided to chair a meeting with the MPs, MLAs, Zila Parishad chief and district party president of each district. The idea is to review the party’s organisational strength and weaknesses in a particular district and make a realistic assessment of its electoral prospects there,” a party MP said on Wednesday.

Ms Banerjee will hold these meetings at her Kalighat residence.

“The first meeting will be held with the elected representatives of West Midnapore district,” he said. Ms Banerjee is likely to chair these meetings every Saturday provided she is not away touring a district for administrative review meeting.

Ms Banerjee chairs such organisational meetings before every important election. “Trinamul Congr-ess has won every election held in the state since 2011 when it came to power and there is no doubt that the party will once again sweep the 2016 Assembly election. However, the astute political leader that she is, Didi wants to fine-tune the organisational machine before the crucial battle,” the MP added.

After the conclusion of the festive season with the celebration of Diwali-Kali Puja, the chief minister has again started her district tours. In the past two days she visited Nadia and Hooghly districts and is scheduled to visit Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district on Friday.

On Thursday, Ms Banerjee will attend Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Hind’s rally for communal harmony and against intolerance at Shahid Minar. The state chief of the Jamiat Maulana Siddiqullah Chowdhury had earlier a frosty relationship with Ms Banerjee. He had in the past even complained that Ms Banerjee had not kept the promises she had made for the uplift of the minorities. But after a meeting a few months ago, they have come closer and Mr Siddiqullah now feels that what the Left Front could not do in three decades Ms Banerjee has been trying to do in less than five years. Jamiat is a very powerful organisation with a support base which runs in hundreds of thousands. If its past record is any indication, it is going to organise a mega rally on Thursday.