New Delhi:
Having dealt another body blow to Mamata Banerjee by quitting all Trinamool Congress posts, including as chief of the West Bengal unit, former minister Chandrima Bhattacharya has claimed she did so because of one accusation.
The Trinamool rebel faction, led by Bengal Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, claimed to have taken control of the party’s headquarters, Trinamool Bhavan, in Kolkata on Friday. They locked the building’s gates and put up a poster declaring MLA Arup Roy as chairman of the party, in place of Mamata Banerjee.
After announcing her resignation and meeting Ritabrata Banerjee on Saturday, Bhattacharya – who was seen as one of Mamata Banerjee’s closest aides – said the former West Bengal chief minister had blamed her for handing over the office to the rebels.
“Yesterday, after the incident occurred, Mamata ji told me that I handed over Trinamool Bhavan to the seven or eight MLAs who went there. I felt bad about this and that’s why I resigned… I felt that the confidence she had in me and the extent to which she relied on me had been questioned. Where there is no trust, where there is no confidence, it’s not possible to work properly. This is why I have resigned,” Bhattacharya said.
Bhattacharya was appointed president of the Bengal unit of the Trinamool Congress on June 3 and her resignation just a month later has led Mamata Banerjee loyalists to allege that she was chasing power after the party’s defeat in the Assembly elections.
Terming Bhattacharya “arrogant”, MLA Kunal Ghosh said, “Anyone can make any decision, but when Mamata Banerjee was the chief minister, Bhattacharya held the most important ministry. Now she is displaying arrogance.”
READ | Another Jolt To Mamata Banerjee, Trinamool Bengal Chief Quits, Meets Rebels
He also asked why Bhattacharya had not resigned when she was enjoying the “plum portfolios” given to her by Mamata Banerjee.
‘So Be It’
Ritabrata Banerjee is leading a faction of over 60 of Trinamool Congress’ 80 MLAs and another bloc, led by another Mamata Banerjee loyalist, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, has also rebelled, leading to 20 MPs merging with the little-known Nationalist Citizens Party of India.
Ritabrata Banerjee’s group and the bloc led by Mamata Banerjee are now fighting to prove they are the ‘real’ Trinamool Congress. The Election Commission has asked both sides to submit documents to substantiate their “claims and counterclaims” about organisational elections and the party’s authorised signatories.
Hitting out at the rebels on Saturday, Mamata Banerjee called them traitors and insisted that she would keep fighting, including for her party’s ‘flowers and grass’ symbol.
“The party symbol won’t go anywhere. If you want to stop me, you need to kill me,” she said.
Asked about Bhattacharya, Banerjee said her resignation had been in the works for a while, following up that statement with cutting remarks.
“The person who resigned today did not make this decision overnight. She had been planning to leave the party for a long time because her son had already joined them (the rebels). So be it. No political party depends on just one or two individuals. It relies on its workers and the public. There have even been instances where an individual stayed under my protection for days because they feared arrest by the BJP. I provided them with shelter, food, and support,” she claimed.
