He is likely to join in BJP, Mamta hits back,says “One or two come during the high tide and go out during the low. It doesn’t matter.”
Kolkata siyasat.net
Ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections, aggrieved West Bengal politician Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday quit the Trinamool Congress. Over the last few weeks, the heavyweight leader has gradually resigned from all administrative posts. Most recently, on Wednesday, he had submitted his resignation as MLA to the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.
Now, in a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, he said that he was tendering his resignation as a member of the All India Trinamool Congress as well as from all other positions held by him in the party and its associate organisations “with immediate effect”.
There is speculation that the politician will join the BJP in the days to come – possibly on the 19th when Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to visit Kolkata. Once one of the TMC supremo’s top aides, Adhikari had written to Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar seeking seeking his intervention on any potential mischief directed towards him out of political vendetta after tendering his resignation as MLA. The letter was then shared by the Governor on Twitter.
The rift between Adhikari and his former party has been growing over the last few months. Multiple rounds of talks with senior party leaders had failed to bring about a reconciliation, and for some time now, Adhikari has been holding political events without any TMC symbol in sight. At the end of November, he had resigned as the West Bengal Transport Minister, as well as other offices that he had held.
Adhikari’s exit is not an isolated incident. According to reports, five leaders in Bengal’s Malda district have also submitted their resignations on Thursday. According to an update shared by news agency ANI, Chairman of South Bengal State Transport Corporation, Col. (R) Diptangshu Choudhary has also tendered his resignation to Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee today.
Meanwhile, Accusing the BJP of trying to poach Trinamool Congress leaders ahead of next year’s assembly elections, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata didi said there may be a couple of “opportunists” in her party but the “real assets are the old-timers”.
Indirectly targeting rebel party leader Suvendu Adhikari, who is likely to join BJP later this week, she told a public rally in Coochbehar, “One or two come during the high tide and go out during the low. It doesn’t matter.”
Those who were there in Trinamool from the first day, they are still here. They’ll continue to fight. Remember, they’ll not change their character. One changes his clothes but not ideology,” said the chief minister, who is on a three-day tour of North Bengal.
She claimed the BJP was trying to coerce Trinamool Congress leaders to join the saffron party. “Imagine the audacity of the BJP leaders, they are calling up my state president Subrata Bakshi and asking him to join the party. The BJP does not have any political courtesy or ideology
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