Union Home Minister Amit Shah welcomed former Trinamool Congress heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari and several others to the BJP on Saturday at a rally in West Bengal’s Pashchim Medinipur. Taking a potshot at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Shah said: “Why are so many people leaving Trinamool Congress? Because of the misrule, corruption and nepotism of Mamata Banerjee. Didi, this is just the beginning. By the time elections come, you will be left all alone.”
Not only Adhikari, but nine MLAs from different parties, and Trinamool MP Sunil Mondal also joined the BJP at the rally addressed by Shah. He claimed that the BJP would be victorious in the coming assembly elections in the state and form the government winning at least 200 put of 294 seats at stake.
Shah said that the BJP will turn the state into “Sonar Bangla” within five years after coming to power. He also said that these leaders were leaving Trinamool because of Mamata’s high-handedness. Referring to a barb by Mamata that the BJP was enticing her party leaders, Shah should think about what was her enticement to leave the Congress years ago.
Shah and Adhikari referred to the discontent in Trinamool ranks caused by the rise of Abhishek Banerjee, Mamata’s nephew. Abhishek is being propped up by the CM at the cost of others who had far wider support among masses, Adhikari said giving the slogan “Bhaipo hatao (Remove the nephew)”.
In his speech, Adhikari said when he fell ill and had Covid-`9, nobody from TMC called him up to check his well-being. However, during that hour of crisis, Amit Shah called him twice to inquire about his health. Incidentally, Adhikari had resigned from the cabinet on November 27 and then from the party itself three days ago.
Adhikari also said that Bengal was in a very bad economic state and that the reins of the state should be handed over to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This bad economic condition is the result of rampant misrule under TMC government. He took strong exception to being called a “backstabber” by the TMC, pointing out that the party humiliated him no end earlier.
Narendra Modi, Darjeeling to Digha, Khudiram Bose, Ramprasad Bismil, Prashant Kishor, Dilip Ghosh, Kailash Vijayvargiya, Beiljuri, West Midnapore, JP Nadda, Madan Mitra, Kalyan Banerjee, Banashree Maity,
Adhikari and his associates said a strong political storm has started blowing in the state sweeping all sides from “Darjeeling to Digha” and it will uproot the Mamata government.
Shah cited the examples of freedom fighters like Khudiram Bose and Ramprasad Bismil to tell rival parties that indulging in regionalism waw shallow politics. This was apparently to remind Mamata who has called the BJP a party of outsiders. The irony lies in her dependence on an outsider Prashant Kishor, from Bihar, who is planning her party strategy for 2021 assembly polls.
Shah, accompanied by party leader Dilip Ghosh and the party’s West Bengal in charge Kailash Vijayvargiya, had lunch at a farmer’s house in Belijuri village in West Midnapore district. Some days ago, a convoy of BJP chief J P Nadda was attacked by alleged TMC workers, leading to a spat between the Centre and the state.
Some TMC leaders made light of Adhikari leaving the party and one of them, Madan Mitra remarked: “We are free from the virus now.” Another TMC leader Kalyan Banerjee said that Shah doesn’t understand the realities of West Bengal politics.
Among those who joined the BJP along with Adhikari were Trinamool Congress: Sunil Mondal (MP), Banashree Maity (MLA), Biswjit Kundu (MLA), Saikat Panja (MLA),Shilabhadra Dutta (MLA), Sukra Munda (MLA). Congress: Sudip Mukherjee (MLA), CPM: Tapas Mondal (MLA); CPI: Ashok Dinda (MLA), Dilip Biswas (had won on CPM ticket but joined TMC later).
Several other TMC leaders are also in a rebellious mood and it is likely that more resignations at block, district and state level will follow in the party in the near future. Adhikari’s father, Sisir Adhikari is a TMC MP and his brother is also an important party leader. They too are likely to leave TMC soon but nothing was said about them today at the rally, the focus firmly on Suvendu Adhikari, hero of the Nandigram agitation once. Incidentally, that agitation had catapulted Trinamool Congress to power in West Bengal a decade ago. Will his exit from the party also bring down the curtains on its rule in the state?
