Mamata All India Trinamool Congress (MAITC) national joint secretary Derek O'Brien on Saturday sought to play down the differences between the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab, saying their rivalry in the state was natural but had no bearing on the broader opposition's fight against the BJP.
In a post on X, the MAITC Parliamentary Party leader in the Rajya Sabha said that the Congress and the AAP were fighting it out "fair and square" in Punjab and would naturally attack each other, but asserted that the BJP had no reason to celebrate the differences.
"In Punjab, it's Congress versus AAP, fighting it out fair and square. So it is natural the two will come hard at each other. In all this, the BJP have nothing to fake smile about. All Opposition parties fighting the BJP know our roles. All good," he said.
The remarks come amid an intensifying war of words between the Congress and AAP ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi had launched the Congress's campaign in the state at an 'Insaaf Rally' in Sangrur on November 4, accusing the AAP government of failing to tackle the drug menace and alleging that Punjab was being run from Delhi under the influence of AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal.
AAP hit back at Gandhi, accusing him of resorting to personal attacks against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
While the MAITC is part of the INDIA bloc, the Aam Aadmi Party has distanced itself from the opposition alliance.