Rebel Trinamool faction set to secure Bengal Assembly PAC chair without a vote
The rebel faction in the Trinamool Congress is set to secure the chairmanship of the West Bengal Assembly's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) after nominations for
The rebel faction in the Trinamool Congress is set to secure the chairmanship of the West Bengal Assembly's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) after nominations for the 20-member panel matched the number of vacancies, removing the need for an election. Senior leaders Firhad Hakim and Samar Mukhopadhyay have emerged as the main contenders for the post. The development comes amid an ongoing power struggle between the two rival TMC factions led by Mamata Banerjee and Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee. Assembly sources said the treasury bench has decided to follow parliamentary convention and allow the PAC chairmanship to remain with the opposition, which is expected to benefit the Ritabrata Banerjee camp. Read Full Story Sources said nominations were filed for all 20 seats in the committee, exactly matching its sanctioned strength. This averted what could have become the first legislative test of strength between the two camps. With no voting needed to constitute the committee, attention has now shifted to the election of its chairperson.
Assembly sources said the Ritabrata Banerjee faction currently has the support of 65 of the 80 TMC MLAs, and one of its legislators is expected to be elected chairman. Firhad Hakim, the former Kolkata Mayor and the senior-most face in the Ritabrata camp, and Ratua MLA Samar Mukhopadhyay are understood to be the principal contenders. Hakim is a former loyalist of Mamata Banerjee who recently switched camps. The PAC is one of the legislature's most important oversight panels. It examines government expenditure and studies reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General. It can have a maximum of 20 members, including the chairperson. Among the 20 nominated members are five MLAs from the Ritabrata Banerjee camp: Firhad Hakim, Samar Mukhopadhyay, Biplab Mitra, Golam Rabbani and Kanailal Agarwal. The remaining members include veteran MLA and Mamata Banerjee loyalist Ashok Kumar Deb, along with treasury bench legislators Anup Kumar Saha, Amlan Bhaduri, Bankim Chandra Ghosh, Rajesh Kumar, Roopa Ganguly, Saikat Panja, Samarendra Nath Ghosh and Sonam Lama.
Until recently, both factions were preparing for a contest over committee membership. Had nominations exceeded the 20 available seats, voting would have been inevitable and the PAC election would have turned into a symbolic floor test between the Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee camps inside the Assembly. The stakes remain high as the question of who represents the "real" TMC is still unresolved after the party split, with the matter pending before the Election Commission. The political crisis began after a majority of the party's MLAs backed expelled leader Ritabrata Banerjee's claim to the post of Leader of the Opposition and rejected the Mamata Banerjee camp's nominee, Sovandeb Chattopadhyay. That dispute over legislative leadership is now before the courts. The PAC chairmanship has long carried political significance in West Bengal. While there is no statutory provision requiring the post to go to the opposition, parliamentary convention says it should be held by the principal opposition party to ensure effective oversight of government finances.
The BriefWire