Rahul's '100% Rigged' Charge, Sonia's 'Sherni' Praise: Under Fire At Home, Didi Gets INDIA Lifeline

Published 9 June 2026 · politics

Rahul's '100% Rigged' Charge, Sonia's 'Sherni' Praise: Under Fire At Home, Didi Gets INDIA Lifeline Reported By, Edited By Last Updated: June 09, 2026, 08:28

Rahul's '100% Rigged' Charge, Sonia's 'Sherni' Praise: Under Fire At Home, Didi Gets INDIA Lifeline Reported By, Edited By Last Updated: June 09, 2026, 08:28 IST Sources said Banerjee received backing from alliance partners, with leaders saying the issues she raised about electoral processes needed to become a collective opposition campaign Rapid Read Opposition parties closed ranks around Mamata Banerjee despite TMC facing one of its most difficult political moments after the poll rout and the rebellion inside the party. (PTI) The INDIA bloc’s most crucial meeting since the assembly election setbacks opened with a forceful defence of Mamata Banerjee as opposition leaders rallied behind the Trinamool Congress chief and turned the discussion into a broader attack on the electoral process. Leaders familiar with the discussions told CNN-News18 that Banerjee told alliance partners that nearly 60 per cent of the West Bengal election – in which Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) scripted history by sweeping the state – had been “rigged". This prompted Rahul Gandhi to immediately go further. “Not 60 per cent. One hundred per cent," the Congress leader responded, drawing agreement from several leaders present in the room. ALSO READ | They Showed No ‘Mamata’ Towards TMC: Who All Left After Bengal Poll Loss? Parties That Split In Past Explained The exchange set the tone for a meeting that saw opposition parties close ranks around Banerjee despite the Trinamool Congress facing one of its most difficult political moments after its assembly election defeat and the rebellion that followed inside the party.

In a gesture that seemed to put to an end to talks of bitterness between the TMC and Congress, Sonia Gandhi described Banerjee as a “sherni" [lioness], a move seen by participants as a message that the opposition alliance was standing firmly behind the TMC chief. Sources said Banerjee received full backing from alliance partners, with leaders arguing that the issues she raised about electoral processes needed to become a collective opposition campaign rather than a state-specific grievance. Omar Abdullah’s Message One of the strongest interventions at the meeting came from Omar Abdullah. Sources told CNN-News18 that the Jammu and Kashmir chief minister argued that opposition parties needed to pay closer attention to the issues being raised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and convert them into sustained political campaigns. “We need to learn from the issues they are raising. Don’t let CJP walk away with it," Abdullah is learnt to have told fellow leaders. Allies Corner Congress While the meeting showcased solidarity on electoral issues, it also became a forum for allies to air long-standing grievances against Congress. Left parties complained that Congress leaders attacked them during the Kerala election campaign in language that often sounded no different from BJP criticism. ALSO READ | Mamata Bets On INDIA Bloc To Regain Ground As TMC Turmoil Deepens Internal Dissent According to sources, Rahul Gandhi acknowledged the concern but defended some of the rhetoric by saying Congress also had to consider the views and political compulsions of its state units.