Is West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari rushing to Delhi to meet around 20 former Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs who have now aligned themselves with the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic
Alliance (NDA)? News18 has learnt that the Bengal Chief Minister is scheduled to meet the MPs at 1 pm on Tuesday, with Banga Bhaban being finalised as the likely venue. The Chief Minister’s Office confirmed the time and venue to one of the MPs on Monday afternoon. Bengal Secretariat sources suggest that Adhikari has meetings scheduled for Tuesday morning. The Chief Minister will take a final call on Delhi visit after the morning meetings. Last week, he cancelled his scheduled Delhi visit. However, NCPI MP Satabdi Roy received a confirmation about the 1 pm meeting, she says. Sources said the meeting is likely to focus on how the MPs will utilise their MPLADS funds now that they have aligned themselves with the NDA, with the state government keen to ensure that development expenditure through the MPs’ funds is coordinated with West Bengal’s broader priorities. But the agenda is not expected to be restricted to MPLADS. Sources within the NCPI told News18 that discussions could also centre on how the MPs can work in sync with the Bengal government on development projects, as well as which issues they should raise during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament that could potentially benefit the state. The meeting, therefore, could mark an important first step in institutionalising the new political arrangement involving the 20 former TMC MPs. The timing of the meeting, however, is politically significant. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has not yet formally given his nod to the former TMC MPs joining the NCPI, even though the MPs have been allowed to sit separately in the House. Their participation in the recent all-party meeting had also triggered sharp reactions from the Opposition. The TMC has already stepped up its challenge to the realignment. Party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, along with Kalyan Banerjee and Mahua Moitra, has met Speaker Om Birla and sought action against the MPs under the anti-defection law. It is against this backdrop that the Bengal Chief Minister’s Tuesday meeting assumes significance. While the immediate focus is expected to be on MPLADS funds, development coordination and Parliament strategy, the meeting could also provide a clearer indication of how the 20 MPs intend to function politically after moving away from the TMC and aligning themselves with the NDA. The larger question is whether Tuesday’s meeting is merely about coordinating development work, or whether it is the beginning of a more structured political arrangement between the Bengal government and the former TMC MPs, even as their formal status in the Lok Sabha remains contested.
