Yusuf Pathan, Saayoni Ghosh, Shatrughan Sinha among 19 TMC MPs signed rebel list
As the political turmoil within the Trinamool Congress deepened and spilled into Parliament, as many as 19 MPs, including prominent faces such as Yusuf Pathan
As the political turmoil within the Trinamool Congress deepened and spilled into Parliament, as many as 19 MPs, including prominent faces such as Yusuf Pathan, Sayoni Ghosh and Shatrughan Sinha, reportedly signed the rebel list, with the party appearing to be headed for a vertical split, sources said. This unprecedented rebellion among parliamentarians, coming on the heels of a massive mutiny in the West Bengal Assembly, marks the gravest challenge to Mamata Banerjee’s authority since the party’s inception and could permanently alter its political prospects in Kolkata and New Delhi. Read Full Story The TMC MPs who allegedly joined the rebel camp are Shatrughan Sinha (Asansol) Kakoli Ghosh (Barasat) Jagdish Chandra Basunia (Cooch Behar) Khali ur Rehman (Jangipur) Yusuf Pathan (Behrampur) Abu Tahir Khan (Murshidabad) Partha Bhumik (Barrackpore) Bapi Haldar (Mathurapur) Saayoni Ghosh(Jadavpur) Mala Roy (Kolkata South) Mitali Bag (Aarambagh) Deepak Adhikari (Ghatal) Kalipada Soren (Jhalgram) June Malia (Medinipur) Aroop Chakraborty (Bankura) Sharmila Sarkar (Vardhaman East) Asit Kumar Mall (Bolpur) Satabdi Roy (Birbhum) Rachana Bannerjee (Hooghly) The TMC currently has 28 MPs in the Lok Sabha, with one vacancy following the death of Basirhat MP Haji Nurul Islam.
Sources claimed that the latest rebellion has reduced Mamata Banerjee’s effective support base in the House to just 19 MPs. Sources in the rebel camp said the dissident MPs have decided against immediately resigning from the TMC or formally joining the BJP. Instead, they are planning to function as a separate bloc extending support to the NDA, a move apparently aimed at avoiding disqualification under the anti-defection law. The strategy is believed to be centred on leveraging provisions of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution while maintaining that the faction represents a legitimate split within the parliamentary party. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, who is said to be leading the rebel faction, reportedly told associates that the group would write to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla declaring support for the NDA. Dastidar had earlier claimed that at least 20 TMC MPs were ready to submit a formal letter to the Speaker. Sources further indicated that the dissident camp is likely to argue before the Speaker that Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar continues to remain the chief whip of the TMC in the Lok Sabha, a claim that could become central to the legal and procedural battle likely to unfold in Parliament.
The political drama intensified after reports emerged that a group of rebel MPs held a meeting on Tuesday at the Delhi residence of senior BJP leader Bhupender Yadav. A photograph purportedly from the meeting, which has since circulated widely on social media, showed Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Shekhar Ray along with MPs Abu Taher, Asit Mal, Arup Chakraborty, Kalipada Soren, Jagdish Basunia, Prasun Banerjee, Sharmila Sarkar and Satabdi Roy. Party insiders also claimed that around 20 MPs attended an informal gathering at an undisclosed location in the national capital late on Sunday night, news agency PTI reported. The rebellion in Parliament comes close on the heels of a major setback for the TMC leadership in the West Bengal Assembly. Earlier this week, 58 of the party’s 80 MLAs reportedly defied the leadership’s decision to appoint veteran leader Sovandeb Chattopadhyay as the Leader of the Opposition and instead backed expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee for the post. The parallel rebellions in both Parliament and the Assembly have raised serious questions about Mamata Banerjee’s grip over the party organisation after the TMC’s disappointing electoral performance.
The BriefWire