Amid a significant split within the Trinamool Congress (TMC), two "dissident" MPs, June Maliah and Deepak Adhikari (Dev), along with an MLA, attended an administrative meeting chaired by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. This event follows a major rebellion within the TMC, where 20 Lok Sabha MPs reportedly declared support for the BJP-led NDA as a separate bloc.
Rebel Trinamool Congress MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar on Sunday said two more parliamentarians were set to join the dissident group, which would take its strength in the Lok Sabha to 22.
'The power of love is the greatest power in the world.' 'Add a smile and you can conquer the world,' Bengali actor June Maliah, the Trinamool Congress's candidate for the Medinipur constituency, tells Swarupa Dutt/Rediff.com.
Cricketer Yusuf Pathan will contest from the Baharampur Lok Sabha seat, whereas Kirti Aazd will fight from the Bardhaman-Durgapur constituency.
The BJP could win only 16 out of 57 seats where Shah campaigned.