West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said there is no alternative to the Trinamool Congress, and no other party can take its place in the state.
Seven TMC MLAs within the Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency of party MP Mahua Moitra have written to Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee demanding her removal as Nadia Uttar organisational district president. The lawmakers allege that Moitra has been ignoring Assembly representatives while undertaking party programmes and indulging anti-social elements, causing significant damage to the party's image. The MP has responded by dismissing the complaint as "district-level rubbish."
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has distanced itself from controversial remarks made by its senior leader and West Bengal minister Firhad Hakim regarding the Muslim percentage in the population. Hakim, in a speech, had claimed that Muslims constitute 33 per cent of the population in West Bengal and 17 per cent nationwide, adding that they could become a numerical majority if they empower themselves. The party issued a statement on Monday condemning Hakim's remarks, asserting that they do not reflect its ideology and commitment to communal harmony. The remarks have sparked a political storm, with the opposition BJP accusing Hakim of attempting to stir communal sentiments. Hakim later clarified that his remarks were misinterpreted and that he was advocating for the empowerment of minorities through education and skill development. However, the controversy has caused ripples within the TMC and complicated the party's messaging.
The home minister called up the chief minister to express serious concern over the reports of large-scale violence.
'We are pleased to announce the candidature of @sagarikaghose, @SushmitaDevAITC, @MdNadimulHaque6 and Mamata Bala Thakur for the forthcoming Rajya Sabha elections,' the party said in a tweet.
He had several complications related to the heart and the kidney, the sources said.
The central agency asked Banerjee to appear at its Kolkata office on Friday morning, he said.
Amid a war of words triggered by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's comments regarding seat-sharing in West Bengal, sources from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Thursday said they will give more time to ally Congress to sort out issues, adding the party is committed to the opposition bloc.
The Trinamool Congress won 211 seats.
'The more you challenge her, the more powerful she gets'
The Congress, which is not very keen on having an alliance with the TMC, called it 'an untrustworthy ally', which is trying to grow at its expense.
Veteran Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy, who has expressed his desire to work for the Bharatiya Janata Party in future, on Wednesday said he is a soldier of the saffron camp, and there is no question of resigning from the Trinamool Congress as he was never 'mentally' with the party even after rejoining it in 2021.
Dev had been serving as the national spokesperson of the Congress and its women's wing chief.
The Congress 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', led by Rahul Gandhi, is scheduled to enter West Bengal from Assam on Thursday, amid political ripples within the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in the state.
While addressing a rally at Alipurduar, Banerjee accused the Election Commission of removing the deputy inspector general of police of Murshidabad at the behest of the BJP.
She is the 21st chief minister of West Bengal and 8th person to hold the office.
Hours after quitting as the MLA of the West Bengal Assembly, Rajib Banerjee on Friday resigned from the primary membership of the Trinamool Congress, intensifying speculation that he might soon switch over to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The roadshow in Dum Dum Lok Sabha constituency was held in support of the TMC's veteran leader and candidate Saugata Roy, who is seeking a fourth consecutive term from the seat.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday attacked West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for pursuing "appeasement and vote bank politics" which were responsible for infiltration.
'My role will be to take her message across the country.'
A fresh political row has erupted in West Bengal over Bharatiya Janata Party national vice-president Dilip Ghosh's alleged unsavoury remarks about West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, with the Trinamool Congress seeking his arrest and unconditional apology.
Leaders of the West Bengal Congress unit, which has an alliance with the CPI-M-led Left Front in the state, were seen welcoming the Left leaders.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Sougata Roy has demanded the removal of Kalyan Banerjee as the party's chief whip in the Lok Sabha after a spat with fellow MP Mahua Moitra. Roy accused Banerjee of "uncivilised" behaviour on multiple occasions and cited incidents of Banerjee breaking a bottle and throwing it at the chairman of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting and making inappropriate remarks about Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. The spat between Moitra and Banerjee reportedly occurred on April 4 when a TMC delegation met the Election Commission over duplicate voter ID numbers. Banerjee was tasked with collecting signatures from TMC MPs on a memorandum to be submitted to the Election Commission, and Moitra alleged that she was not included in the signatories, leading to a heated exchange. Roy, who was present at the time, said he saw Moitra crying and complaining about Banerjee's behaviour. Roy believes that Banerjee's actions warrant his removal as chief whip and left the decision to Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee. The incident has also been highlighted in leaked WhatsApp messages, where Banerjee engaged in heated exchanges with another TMC MP, Kirti Azad, leading to further accusations of uncivilised behaviour.
Soon after coming out of the ED office in Kolkata, Banerjee said the interrogation was an effort to prevent him from participating in the INDIA meet and a testimony to the vital role TMC is playing in forging the opposition unity.
This was second time in a month that the TMC supremo had a telephonic interaction with the agitating farmers.
Tiwari, who was also the Asansol civic body chief, quit the TMC on Thursday, following in the footsteps of the party's former heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari. Sources close to the leaders indicated that they may join the BJP soon, but things seems to have taken a different turn for Tiwari, as Supriyo and other BJP leaders opposed his entry into the saffron party.
Banerjee made it clear that she expected the seat-sharing formula to give priority to regional players in areas where they were strong.
Didi said her party doesn't divide people on religious lines even if they are Hindus, Muslims or Christians.
"We will complain. He can meditate, but televisions cannot show it," she said, alleging that this will amount to "violation of the MCC."
Two days after quitting the Congress, former Goa chief minister Luizinho Faleiro joined the Trinamool Congress on Wednesday.
Mamata asserted that she has not spoken to anyone in the Congress on seat-sharing in the state for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Mamata proposed his name as the joint Opposition candidate for the President's post.
The three-member TMC delegation, led by state minister Partha Chatterjee met EC officials and registered a complaint into the incident and demanded a thorough probe.
"I am really disappointed with the way the party is functioning. I am fed up with so many allegations of corruption levelled against the party and the government. I also do not support the way the issue of Sandeshkhali was handled," he said while maintaining that the dual issues of corruption and Sandeshkhali were the primary triggers for his decision to quit.
The TMC also said that the Congress is not the "big boss" of the opposition.
A case has been registered in Tripura against Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, member of Parliament Dola Sen, West Bengal education minister Bratya Basu and other senior leaders of the party for allegedly obstructing police officers from performing their duties.
The development is a major boost for West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, who has been trying to expand her party's footprint beyond her native state.
Addressing an Eid prayers programme on Red Road in Kolkata, the Trinamool Congress supremo claimed, "Provocations are being made to fuel riots, but please don't fall into these traps. The West Bengal government stands with the minorities. No one can provoke tensions in the state."
As trends show a resounding victory for Mamata Banerjee and her party the Trinamool Congress in the state of West Bengal, opposition leaders have begun congratulating 'Didi' for her strong show in the polls.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that she would win the ongoing state polls despite injury and eventually aim for power in Delhi.
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