Amid a rebellion with 58 of 80 MLAs forming a separate faction, new LoP Ritabrata Banerjee asserted ‘we are the Trinamool Congress’ and that his group has the majority of elected representatives. The rebel group has formed a new NWC.
‘We are the Trinamool Congress’
West Bengal Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee on Tuesday said that there is no question of any dispute over the party symbol, asserting that “we are the Trinamool Congress” amid an internal rift in the party following the formation of a new leadership structure by a rebel group. He further claimed that the majority of elected representatives in West Bengal are aligned with his faction.
Addressing a press conference, Banerjee said, “It is a routine process. Whenever there is a special session or any session, it must be apprised to the Election Commission of India and to the state body also. So that’s a normal process. We have just followed what needs to be done… We are the Trinamool Congress. So, no question of claiming the party symbol arises.” He also said, “Majority of the elected representatives in the state of West Bengal are with us.”
BJP Attacks ‘Shattered’ TMC
Meanwhile, BJP leader Shishir Bajroria launched a sharp attack on the Trinamool Congress, claiming that the party has been “rejected by the people of Bengal” and asserting that the BJP remains the only strong political force in the state. He alleged that the ruling party’s long tenure in West Bengal had ended due to public anger and accused it of surviving on “deception”. “What is true is that neither the grass remained nor the root; across the entirety of Bengal, the only thing that stood tall amid the fierce votes cast by the people here was the lotus flower. In the blink of an eye, in just a few days, the party that had been ruling here for 15 years, whose leader (Mamata Banerjee) was dreaming of becoming the PM, has gone from where to where today. So this is the reality. For so many days, you survived by theft and deception, and the day the people here truly cast their votes, the entire game was over. She didn’t just lose; her party was shattered to pieces,” Bajroria told ANI.
Rebel Faction Forms New Leadership
This comes as a major move after the rebellion within the TMC, as at least 58 of the party’s 80 MLAs revolted against the leadership and formed a separate faction. The rebel group subsequently backed Ritabrata Banerjee to replace Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay as the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly.
The faction also announced the formation of a 30-member National Working Committee (NWC) and stated that former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee should continue to play the role of mentor in the party.
The committee includes Firhad Hakim, Arup Biswas, Rathin Ghosh, Sabina Yasmin, Javed Khan and Sandipan Saha among others. Firhad Hakim, Arup Biswas, Rathin Ghosh and Sabina Yasmin have been appointed as vice-presidents. (ANI)
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