West Bengal: Mamta Banerjee will enter the field through dharna, presence of TMC MLAs will be monitored

Kolkata, June 2. After the defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, Trinamool Congress chief and former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is going to take to the streets. She will lead a one-day protest on Tuesday. However, there remains uncertainty regarding the presence of party MLAs during this protest. As per the scheduled programme, Mamata Banerjee will stage a protest for two hours from 2 pm to 4 pm. It is being told that this protest will be on issues like demolition of illegal buildings in Kolkata and removal of hawkers who are illegally occupying railway land.

However, this attack is also being linked to the protest against the recent attack on Abhishek Banerjee. Mamata Banerjee is going to take to the streets for the first time after her party’s massive defeat in the recently concluded assembly elections. In such a situation, uncertainties are increasing regarding the participation of his own party’s MLAs. After the expulsion of two MLAs on Monday, questions are being raised as to how many party MLAs will join the former Chief Minister in his first public event after his party and his personal defeat in the assembly elections.

The Trinamool Congress on Monday expelled Sandipan Saha from Entali in North Kolkata and Ritabrata Banerjee from Uluberia (East) in Howrah district. The action took place when Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari told media persons that an investigation has been initiated by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) into the discrepancies in the signatures of Trinamool Congress MLAs. Both Sandipan and Ritabrata had informed Assembly Speaker Rathindra Bose about the discrepancy in the signatures.

Since then, both Sandipan and Ritabrata have been very active in rallying many Trinamool Congress MLAs in their support. The market of speculation is hot after a meeting that lasted till Monday night. The meeting took place between the two expelled MLAs and two other experienced Trinamool Congress MLAs at a hostel on Kidd Street in central Kolkata. Other MLAs include Javed Ahmed Khan and Seuli Saha.

Both Seuli Saha and Khan were members of the previous state cabinet led by Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal. Saha’s answers regarding the agenda of the meeting have further fueled speculations of a possible bigger political upheaval within the Trinamool Congress in the coming days. He said, “We had come to the MLA hostel to see the rooms allotted to us. There we met Sandipan and Ritabrata. We chatted over a cup of tea. Remember, he has been expelled from the party. But he has not been expelled as an MLA.”

Since both Sandipan and Ritabrata have been expelled from the party, they will be able to continue as MLAs for the remaining five-year term and the provisions of the anti-defection law will not apply to them. Party insiders said that apart from Khan and Saha, many other Trinamool Congress MLAs are in touch with these two expelled MLAs. In such a situation, the presence of party MLAs in Mamata Banerjee’s first public program after the elections on Tuesday will indicate the ongoing turmoil within the Trinamool Congress.