Suspended Trinamool leader Riju Dutta claims 50 MLAs might defect from party, compares split to Shiv Sena

Kolkata: The political crisis within the Trinamool Congress appears to be deepening as suspended party leader Riju Dutta on Tuesday claimed that around 50 MLAs from the party might split up and form the ‘Asli Trinamool Congress’. He said that the situation was similar to that of the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, which had split into two factions in 2022.

In an interaction with IANS, Dutta said: “It has come to light that yesterday afternoon, under the leadership of Sandipan Saha and Ritabrata Banerjee, around 50 MLAs have conducted a meeting, either on phone or in person.”

Significantly, the Trinamool Congress on Monday expelled the two MLAs, Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha, for anti-party activities.

“I have heard that these leaders want to split the Trinamool Congress and form a new party, which they want to name ‘Asli Trinamool Congress’. They want to make Ritabrata Banerjee the Leader of the Opposition,” he added.

Dutta further said that these MLAs can later stake a claim on the party symbol of the Trinamool.

“Trinamool MLA Kunal Ghosh had appealed to other MLAs of the party during his press conference to maintain unity and not to listen to Ritabrata Banerjee,” he mentioned.

He claimed that a lot of things have taken place between Monday night and today afternoon. “Senior Trinamool Congress leaders are calling up to appeal that the party should not be split,” he added.

“I have personal information that many of the party leaders are angry against (Trinamool general secretary and MP) Abhishek Banerjee and against the I-PAC, for the way I-PAC was imposed on them. Around 50 MLAs have almost decided that they will split up and form ‘Asli Trinamool Congress’. Post which they will submit a letter to the Assembly Speaker,” Dutta claimed.

He highlighted that the anti-defection law won’t work if 50 MLAs defect from the Trinamool and submit a letter to the Speaker.

Drawing similarities to the Shiv Sena and Shiv Sena-UBT, he said: “Shiv Sena Maharashtra Model is now taking place in Bengal.”

The MLAs were expelled from the Trinamool after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, addressing a press conference from the state secretariat Nabanna, announced that it was Ritabrata and Sandipan who had submitted a written complaint to the Speaker regarding the Assembly signature forgery case.

Meanwhile, a day after being expelled from the party, Ritabrata Banerjee claimed that after facing “public anguish” at Sonarpur in South 24 Parganas district on the afternoon of May 30, Abhishek Banerjee had now sought Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) security cover for himself.

IANS