Kolkata, June 16 (IBNS) Congress in West Bengal is free to leave the coalition government, said Trinamool Congress leader and state's urban development minister Firhad Hakim on Saturday as the ties between the two parties hit a new low over Pranab Mukherjee's candidature for the Presidential polls.
"They are free to leave. No one is holding them back," said Hakim.
With West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee opposing the candidature of Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee for the presidential polls, the Congress in the state said they are not anymore interested in staying in the government.
West Bengal Congress chief Pradip Bhattacharjee also hit out at the ruling Trinamool in the state saying the latter is not fit to rule.
"Our ministers in the state government are anyway not getting cooperation from the Trinamool," said Bhattacharjee.
In New Delhi, Congress too hardened its stand on Mamata Banerjee.
Congress senior leader Digvijaya Singh in a TV interview said the Congress had accommodated her tantrums as much as possible.
The TMC-Congress row escalated after Mamata Banerjee named Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as a candidate for the post of President.
The Congress also accused TMC of breaking decorum by divulging before media the discussions between her and Sonia Gandhi on Pranab Mukherjee and Hamid Ansari as choices of Congress for the post of president.
TMC, however, said party supremo Mamata Banerjee shared information on Presidential election only after taking Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's consent on the issue.
