Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid has backed Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s allegations of discrepancies in the results of recently concluded Assembly elections in West Bengal.
“We felt that too, not just Bengal but in Assam as well. People keep on saying, You only feel it when you lose and don’t feel it if you win. But the point is, when we lose, we have a lot to question,” Khurshid, the former Union Law Minister, told news agency PTI in an exclusive interview.
Khurshid’s comments came hours after Mamata Banerjee refused to resign as Chief Minister, saying that the West Bengal election results did not reflect the people’s mandate but were the outcome of a conspiracy. The TMC chief also alleged that her party was not contesting against the BJP, but against the Election Commission, which she claimed was working “for the BJP”.
“The question of my resignation does not arise, as we were defeated not by a public mandate but by a conspiracy… I did not lose, I will not go to Lok Bhavan. They can take action as per constitutional norms,” Mamata Banerjee said.
Khurshid explained that while Congress was not a major player in Bengal, there were questions about Assam, where the Congress party was a player and lost for the third time in a row.
In the same conversation, Khurshid hailed Congress-led UDF’s victory in Kerala.
“We had some things going for us in Assam, certainly, if not in Bengal,” Khurshid, who has also been India’s foreign minister during the UPA tenure, said.
The Bengal chief minister further alleged large-scale irregularities in the counting process, claiming the mandate in nearly 100 seats was “looted”. She also said the counting process was deliberately slowed to demoralise the Trinamool.
“Why should I resign? We have not lost. Votes have been looted. Where does the question of resignation arise?” the TMC chief asserted.
These statements come a day after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered victories in Bengal and Assam. The saffron party won over 200 seats in Bengal where it is all set to form its government for the first time since Independence. In Assam, the BJP scripted a hattrick under incumbent chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
When we lose, we have a lot to question.
Refusing to resign from her post, Mamata Banerjee has also indicated that constitutional options remain open. “They can take action as per constitutional norms,” she said, without elaborating.
The term of the 17th West Bengal Legislative Assembly ends on 7 May 2026, marking the end of Mamata Banerjee’s five-year tenure that began in 2021. This means that after 7 May, Mamata Banerjee will cease to be the chief minister.
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