Poised for a meeting with BJP leader Bhupender Yadav.
Dissident Trinamool MPs are looking to merge with a Tripura-based party, the Nationalist Citizens Party, rather than joining the BJP directly. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, one of the dissidents, revealed this plan after meeting Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Sunday. This decision was taken at the suggestion of the BJP.
After leaving the Speaker’s residence, Ghosh Dastidar said, “We have requested seating arrangements separate from the Trinamool. We are merging with the Nationalist Citizen Party of India. The Speaker has been informed of this decision.” He stated that they would support the BJP-led NDA alliance.
Mamata Banerjee, who institutionalized the practice of poaching members from other parties in West Bengal politics during her fifteen-year tenure, is now witnessing her own party fracturing in both Parliament and the Legislative Assembly. The Nationalist Citizens Party is a political party in Tripura.
Shortly before that, Trinamool MP and the party’s All India General Secretary, Abhishek Banerjee, wrote to the Speaker requesting that the statements made by the party’s dissidents not be acknowledged. Two MPs loyal to Mamata Banerjee—Kirti Azad and Sagarika Ghose—visited the Speaker’s residence with his letter.
Two MPs stated that the Speaker has been informed that recognizing the breakaway MPs as a separate group would be unconstitutional. The party does not endorse the stance taken by these dissidents, nor can they be recognized as the “real” Trinamool Congress.
Meanwhile, prior to meeting the Speaker, the dissidents—including Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Mala Roy, Saayoni Ghosh, June Malia, and Yusuf Pathan—held a lengthy meeting at the Delhi residence of BJP leader Bhupender Yadav.
Political circles believe that, acting on the BJP’s advice, the decision was made to join another party rather than seeking recognition for a new group in Parliament. Some sources indicate that certain leaders within the state BJP held differing views regarding directly inducting the dissident members into the party.
On Sunday morning in Delhi, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar claimed that their tally of MPs had risen from 20 to 22. It has been reported that a list of names has been submitted to the Speaker. However, it is not clear whether all the MPs named on the list actually met with the Speaker on the day.
The Sudip-Kakli camp claimed that some MPs could not attend because they were stranded. The meeting with Bhupender Yadav took place in the afternoon instead of at night, and the Speaker was met on Sunday rather than Monday. Rumors also circulated that not all members could make it due to the rescheduling of the meeting time.
A question remains as to whether the group possesses the requisite two-thirds strength mandated by the anti-defection law; this would require at least 20 MPs.
There is also uncertainty regarding Sudip Bandyopadhyay’s stance. He stated in the afternoon that the dissident faction had proposed forming a separate group with Mamata Banerjee as an advisor. However, he did not sign the letter submitted to the Speaker, saying he would do so only if the Chief Minister gave the go-ahead. Shortly thereafter, that night, Kakoli and others met the Speaker; Sudip was also present.
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