New Delhi, March 12 (IANS) The Congress Thursday announced it would contest the Lok Sabha elections from 14 of West Bengal's 42 constituencies under a seat-sharing agreement with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress.
'We have reached a broad understanding with the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal for seat sharing,' the party's West Bengal in-charge Keshava Rao told reporters here. He also named the seats.
The Trinamool Congress would contest in the remaining 28 constituencies in the state.
The Congress seats include those represented by its six sitting MPs, including External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, who has been in hospital in a state of coma for months.
Speaking of the alliance, Rao said: 'The friendship is with a larger perspective to face and defeat the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which has shattered the economy and progress of the state.'
The CPI-M leads the Left Front that has been ruling the state for more than three decades.
Asked if the Congress would have any truck with the Left parties after the elections, party spokesperson Manish Tewari said: 'The elections have been announced. We have gone for alliances with like-minded parties and we are confident of forming the government.'
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