Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asked Trinamool Congress MLAs not to get worried by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s victory in the Delhi Assembly elections, The Indian Express reported. She said that the Congress was not strong enough in the state to hurt the Trinamool’s chances.

Banerjee rejected the possibility of allying with the Congress for the state polls and claimed that the Trinamool would win the elections with a two-thirds majority.

West Bengal is expected to head for polls in the first half of 2026.

“The Congress did not help the AAP in Delhi,” the newspaper quoted Banerjee as saying at Trinamool Congress’ legislative party meeting. “The Congress should have been more flexible during seat adjustment [with AAP] in Delhi. Similarly, in Haryana, AAP was rigid against making an alliance with Congress.”

Banerjee said that as a consequence, the BJP won in Haryana and Delhi, The Indian Express quoted an unidentified party leader as saying.

The Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress contested the Delhi polls separately even though they are members of the Opposition INDIA bloc at the national level. In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the Aam Aadmi Party-Congress alliance lost all seven parliamentary seats in Delhi to the BJP.

The Congress “is not a factor” in West Bengal, Banerjee was quoted as saying.

The Congress and the Left front, along with some smaller parties, had contested the 2021 West Bengal elections in an alliance against the Trinamool Congress. The alliance had won just one seat in the 294-member Assembly, despite securing about 10% of the vote share.

In the 2024 general elections, the Congress-Left alliance won one out of West Bengal’s 42 Lok Sabha seats.

The Trinamool Congress chief said: “In Delhi, Congress can spoil the journey of AAP. But here they can’t. We will fight alone in the coming Assembly election and we will win more than two-thirds seats… Here nobody is a factor and can’t take away our votes. We will easily win in 2026.”

According to an unidentified Trinamool Congress leader, Banerjee said that like-minded parties must have an understanding to avoid anti-BJP votes getting split, reported The Indian Express. Otherwise, it will be difficult for the Opposition INDIA bloc to stop the BJP at the national level, she was quoted as having said.

She also asked Trinamool Congress legislators to be alert about the BJP allegedly trying to add names of “foreigners in the voter list to win the election”.

Opposition leaders on future of INDIA bloc

Sanjay Raut, a leader of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), said on Tuesday that Banerjee had “always fought independently, be it the Lok Sabha or the Vidhan Sabha”. “However, Congress is a big part of the INDIA alliance and she should always continue to have dialogue with Congress,” Raut told reporters.

Uddhav Sena is part of the INDIA bloc.

On Monday, Congress MP Tariq Anwar said that his party needed to clarify its political strategy. “They have to decide whether they will do coalition politics or go it alone,” said Anwar, who is part of the Congress Working Committee. “Besides, it has also become necessary to make fundamental changes in the organisation of the party.”

Reacting to Anwar comment, Opposition MP Kapil Sibal told ANI that there was no doubt that the INDIA bloc will stay intact.

“...[Opposition leader] Sharad Pawar reiterated many times that the national alliance is applicable only when national elections are held and it is not applicable in regional elections,” Sibal said. “Our regional parties want to have some footprint outside the state as well and the national party wants their footprint not to be reduced, so this discussion should move forward with the consent of all INDIA alliance partners...”

The Rajya Sabha MP added: “There is no doubt that the INDIA alliance will stay intact. Those who manage the leadership of our regional parties are very sensible people and they know what challenges we are facing.”