The political crisis within the Trinamool Congress (TMC) intensified on Wednesday, with several prominent MPs being named as part of the growing dissident camp challenging the party leadership.
The list
of MPs associated with the rebellion includes Yusuf Pathan, Abu Taher Khan, Partha Bhowmik, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Bapi Haldar, Sayoni Ghosh, Rachana Banerjee, Asit Mal, K Rahman, Sharmila Sarkar, Mitali Bag, Shatrughan Sinha, Kalipada Soren, June Malia, Mala Roy, Dev Adhikari, Satabdi Roy, Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia and Arup Chakrabarty.
The developments have added to concerns within the party as the rebellion continues to expand following the TMC’s recent political setbacks.
Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev resigned from the party. Her departure came days after Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy also quit the Trinamool Congress and stepped down from Parliament. Both leaders cited differences with the party leadership while announcing their decisions.
The back-to-back exits have fuelled speculation about the future direction of the party and whether more leaders could follow suit in the coming days.
Kakoli leads dissident faction
The latest developments follow claims made by rebel MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar on Monday that nearly 20 Trinamool Congress MPs had sought to align with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Kakoli has emerged as the face of the rebellion and is leading the dissident faction that has openly challenged the party leadership.
The rebel camp has argued that many leaders within the party were unhappy with the functioning of the organisation and the lack of access to decision-making processes.
With more MPs being linked to the dissident group and senior leaders already resigning, the crisis facing the Trinamool Congress appears to be deepening.
