NEW DELHI: Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury occupied the centrestage in the tense Congress-TMC ties on Friday as he apologised to TMC MP Derek O’Brien for calling him a “foreigner” while alleging that Congress was facing problems in securing permission for public meetings during Rahul Gandhi‘s ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra‘, which is currently in West Bengal.
Earlier, TMC chief Mamata Banerjee had announced that she would go it alone in the Lok Sabha elections in the state and the party had blamed Chowdhury’s repeated outbursts against her as the reason. A bitter critic of Mamata, Chowdhury has been accusing her of having a tacit understanding with BJP, while also attacking her for agreeing to give only two Lok Sabha seats to Congress.
In the heat of the verbal clashes, Chowdhury referred to O’Brien, who blamed him for the breakdown in ties, as a “foreigner”. As his jibe drew sharp criticism, including from the Congress leadership, Chowdhury telephoned O’Brien to apologise to him. “I conveyed my regrets to Derek O’Brien for a word inadvertently uttered by me on him as FOREIGNER,” he posted on X.
Ever since Mamata called off seat-sharing talks with Congress, Chowdhury has been in the crosshairs of party leaders who blame him for the alliance in Bengal taking a hit. They have also wondered how he has not been reined in yet when the party not only wants a united opposition face but is also dependent on the state government for facilitating the yatra in the state. “The impression that it gives is that he has been given a free hand by the party in Bengal,” a leader said, adding, “This negative belief has to be quelled soon, especially when party chief Mallikarjun Kharge is trying to mollify the TMC.”