Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said he and his party share “a very good personal relationship” with Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, adding critical remarks from either side will not affect the seat-sharing talks for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

The former Congress president, who was talking to reporters on the sidelines of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Assam, said talks are underway between his party and the TMC — both allies in the opposition INDIA bloc — on seat-sharing in the eastern state for the crucial general elections.

“Our negotiations over seats are on. The conclusion will be evident. I don’t want to comment on that here. I have a very good personal relationship with Mamata Ji, and so does our party,” Gandhi said.

His remarks came amid speculation of fissures among INDIA bloc members in West Bengal following recent heated comments from leaders from both the Congress and the TMC.

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During an all-faith rally in Kolkata on Monday, Banerjee said she had proposed that the Congress should contest 300 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats and leave the rest for regional parties in various states, but the proposal was ignored at INDIA bloc’s meetings. She also targeted the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M), another ally in the 28-party grouping, accusing it of “controlling” the INDIA meetings.

West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has often been vocal in expressing his discomfort over an alliance with the TMC, saying the INDIA bloc would not work in the eastern state as the Congress as well as the CPI(M) are opposed to both the TMC and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

When asked about Chowdhury’s remarks, Gandhi on Tuesday said: “Sometimes people from our side say something and sometimes they say something. These are natural things. These are not going to disrupt anything.”

TMC Rajya Sabha member Santanu Sen welcomed Gandhi’s remarks, but reminded the leader to restrain Chowdhury from making hostile comments.

“He targets Mamata Banerjee every day in public and makes insulting remarks. Rahul Gandhi should restrain Chowdhury if Congress is serious about the alliance,” Sen said.