Kolkata, Sep 22 (PTI)

 A senior Trinamool Congress leader on Thursday said NCP president Sharad Pawar likely consulted Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee before making a statement about her being ready to bury differences with the Congress, to form an alliance of opposition parties ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai on Wednesday, Pawar had said Banerjee, who is also the TMC supremo, is ready to bury her differences with the Congress in the national interest and come together to form an anti-BJP front before the Lok Sabha polls.

“It is a good statement. Sharad Pawar is a very senior leader of the country, and I don’t think he has made the remarks without consulting our party chief,” TMC leader Sougata Roy told PTI.

The party’s chief spokesperson, Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, however, declined to comment on Pawar’s remark.

“How can I comment on what Sharad Pawar has spoken about? said Ray.

The relationship between Congress and TMC hit an all-time low last year, after the latter had slammed the grand old party as “incapable and incompetent”, which had gone into a “deep freezer.”

In a jolt to the opposition unity, the TMC had also decided to abstain from the vice-presidential election, as it did not agree with the process the candidate was decided upon without keeping the party in the loop.