oppn parties Internal Tiff In TMC: Firhad Hakim On The Backfoot

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Internal Tiff In TMC: Firhad Hakim On The Backfoot

By Linus Garg
First publised on 2024-09-28 08:33:06

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.

Internal fissures in the Trinamool Congress in Bengal have now become serious and a matter of police investigation. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee (the defacto number two in the state), has let his office file a police complaint against Kalicharan Bandhopadhyay, the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) of senior party leader and mayor of Kolkata, Firhad Hakim.  Hakim was once very close to the chief minister and considered her right-hand man. The charges against the OSD are serious - he is accused of having extorted huge sums of money from businessmen and government officials using Abhishek's name. Obviously, such a police complaint could not have been filed without keeping the chief minister in the loop and by that token, it has her approval.

But the mayor is not convinced. He has stood by his OSD and has held numerous marathon meetings with senior officials of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC). There was a rumour in the corridors of the KMC that Bandhopadhyay would be transferred following the allegations against him. But after the meetings, Firhad Hakim chose to back his OSD and told reporters that the allegations were without any basis and no such complaints against Bandhopadhyay had been brought to his notice.

What this obviously means is a direct fight between the offices of two extremely important members of the TMC. If the party does not intervene to sort the matter, it can snowball into a major confrontation. As it is, there were persistent rumours in political circles for the last more than 6 months that Firhad Hakim had lost the confidence of the powers-that-be in the party. This case has complicated matters further.

Mamata Banerjee is known to diplomatically settle internal tiffs in the party. But this time, even her diplomacy is not likely to work because the charges are serious and would not have been levelled by Abhishek Banerjee's office without substantial proof. On the other hand, Hakim is certain that his OSD is not guilty. The climax to this feud is going to be interesting. 

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