Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal on Wednesday scoffed at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's "regional parties come together" comment, saying that defeating the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) without the Congress is "merely a dream".
"Everybody knows the reality of Indian politics. Thinking that without Congress anybody can defeat BJP is merely a dream," news agency ANI quoted KC Venugopal as saying.
Earlier in the day, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said it would be easy to defeat the saffron party if the regional parties come together.
"If all regional parties come together, then it will be easy to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party," she had said while interacting with some civil society members in Mumbai.
Meanwhile, Banerjee on Wednesday said she had suggested to the Congress that an advisory council comprising prominent personalities from civil society be set up to give a direction to the opposition, but rued that the plan did not materialize.
Banerjee is on a three-day visit to Mumbai to meet leaders of the Shiv Sena and the NCP, amid a strain in ties between the TMC and the Congress.
After its landslide victory in West Bengal earlier this year, the TMC inducted several Congress leaders in its fold. Recently, 12 out of 17 Congress MLAs in Meghalaya defected to the TMC, making it the principal opposition party.
To a query on if she would lead the opposition alliance against the BJP, Banerjee said she is a "small worker" and wants to continue so.
"Continous endeavour is necessary in politics. You can't be abroad most of the time," she said in a veiled dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
(With PTI inputs)
