Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday asked party activists to strengthen the party in West Bengal so that it could be a deciding factor in the forthcoming elections and said he wanted an alliance with the Trinamool Congress on honourable terms.
"You have to strengthen the Congress so that it can be a determining factor in the Assembly elections in the state scheduled next year," he said.
"We can extend our hand to the Trinamool Congress, but we cannot bow our head. (Hum hath bara sakte hai, lekin shir jhuka nehi sakte)," Sonia was quoted by a Youth Congress leader, who was present at the closed-door meeting, as having said.
Addressing the Youth Congress workers in this North Bengal town on the second day of his three-day visit in West Bengal, he asked them to strengthen the party for an all-out fight against the CPI-M.
He also assured the activists to make the Congress a movement-oriented party in the state and look into the problems of tribals in the area.
The AICC general secretary said the Congress was serious about forging an alliance with the Trinamool Congress before the coming assembly elections.
