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The Political Scene Heats Up In West Bengal

By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2020-12-17 09:43:02

Ahead of the visit of Amit Shah to West Bengal, the political scene in the state has heated up, with Trinamool Congress (TMC) rebels, mainly Suvendhu Adhikari, upping the ante. Adhikari has resigned from the assembly and has started contacting his supporters and other disgruntled leaders who he thinks are fence sitters who have lost faith in the TMC and might jump ship if they are provided an opportunity.

After Mukul Roy, Suvendhu Adhikari is the tallest TMC leader who has revolted. Hence, he is now becoming a magnet to which others who are also not satisfied with the state of affairs in the party are getting drawn. Adhikari is reportedly in touch with Sunil Mondal, the TMC MP from Burdwan East, who is also disgruntled with the party and other leaders in Burdwan district. All such leaders are waiting to see what Adhikari does next before deciding whether they will go with him or not.

The TMC, on its part, showed nonchalance. While lawyer and party MP Kalyan Banerjee called him a dusthu goru (a mischief making cow) and said that the shed is better to be rid of such mischief makers, another MP, Saugata Roy, called him power hungry and said that the move did not surprise the party as they knew where he was headed. Party chief Mamata Banerjee, on the other hand, said that it does not matter which leaders desert the party and called upon the ordinary worker to step up and counter the divisive politics of the BJP.

But it is certain that desertion by front ranking and mid-level leaders in some districts is going to hurt the TMC in what is expected to be a tough fight in the elections next year. The leaders who are turning their back on the party have grassroots support and many of their loyalists are occupying important positions in the party setup in respective districts. If the TMC does not begin damage control now, given the BJPs open offer to those who want to defect, the virus might spread deep and wide. 

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