Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
The Trinamool Congress’s (TMC) efforts to regroup after the West Bengal assembly election defeat suffered a setback after a crucial party meeting of newly elected MLAs on May 31 had to be called off due to poor attendance.
The meeting, convened by TMC legislative party leader Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay at former chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s Kalighat residence, was intended to strengthen coordination among the 80 legislators and discuss strategy as the Opposition. Mamata was expected to address the legislators. However, only 20 MLAs turned up, forcing the leadership to defer the meeting.
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The development comes at a particularly difficult time for the TMC when its legislative assembly strength is down to the lowest since 2011 and the BJP has assumed power with a massive mandate of 208 seats. The absence of three-fourths of MLAs from the May 31 meeting deepened speculation about growing post-election unease and the leadership’s ability to keep the party united after defeat.
Several Trinamool leaders have privately blamed the party leadership for the election loss while reports of some legislators exploring political alternatives have further fuelled concerns within the organisation. Although BJP leaders have publicly ruled out the possibility of inducting defectors, the post-election atmosphere has left the TMC leadership facing its biggest internal challenge in years.
TMC spokesperson and MLA Kunal Ghosh dismissed suggestions that the low turnout at Mamata’s meeting reflected rebellion within the ranks. He attributed the poor attendance to the volatile political situation that has unfolded following attacks on senior Trinamool leaders over the past two days.
“The MLAs are busy with different programmes following the attack on Abhishek Banerjee in Sonarpur. Apart from this, many MLAs, party leaders and workers are being attacked and heckled in post-poll violence across districts. They are also being arrested on the basis of false cases filed by the police. Considering the situation, the MLAs were making calls since May 30 evening, urging the party leadership to reschedule the day of the meeting,” Ghosh told reporters.
“Besides Abhishek, Kalyan Bandyopadhyay was physically attacked. Naturally, the meeting has been deferred owing to the prevailing situation. The May 31 meeting has been cancelled, as a result of which the MLAs could not attend,” he added.
The explanation came against the backdrop of two incidents involving senior Trinamool leaders that have triggered a sharp political confrontation between the party and the BJP. On May 30, TMC national general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee was heckled and attacked while visiting Sonarpur in South 24 Parganas to meet families affected by post-poll violence. According to the TMC, a hostile crowd confronted him before pelting eggs, stones and bricks. The situation escalated rapidly, with some individuals allegedly slapping and punching the MP before security personnel escorted him away.
Videos from the incident showed Abhishek wearing a cricket helmet while moving through the crowd. The Trinamool claimed he suffered an injury near his eye. Five people have since been arrested in connection with the incident and produced before a court in Baruipur.
The BJP denied involvement, maintaining that the incident reflected public anger against the TMC.
On May 31, another confrontation—this one involving Trinamool Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee—further heightened tensions. Banerjee claimed he was mobbed and physically assaulted outside a police station in Hooghly district while attempting to submit a memorandum against the arrest of Trinamool workers after the elections. He alleged that BJP supporters surrounded and attacked him, leaving him with head injuries.
The incidents prompted an angry response from Mamata, who accused the BJP of orchestrating attacks on Opposition leaders. “Yesterday, BJP supporters brutally attacked and lynched AITC Lok Sabha floor leader Abhishek Banerjee. The terrifying videos are in the public domain. Today, our chief whip in the Lok Sabha, Kalyan Banerjee, was also a victim of a planned BJP attack,” she wrote on social media. “The BJP is murdering democracy.”
The TMC has sought to turn the incidents into a statewide political campaign. Ghosh said party leaders and workers had been instructed to organise protest marches across blocks condemning the attacks on Abhishek and Kalyan Banerjee. Mamata is also preparing to return to the streets. She is scheduled to lead a sit-in demonstration at Rani Rashmoni Avenue in Esplanade on June 2.
Despite the poor turnout, a handful of senior leaders did attend the May 31 meeting. Those present included former legislative assembly speaker Biman Banerjee, veteran Madan Mitra, Palashipara MLA Rukbanur Rahaman, Buzbuz MLA Ashok Deb, Panchla MLA Gulshan Mallick, Maltipur MLA Abdul Rahim Bakshi and Kumarganj MLA Toraf Hossain Mondal.
However, the conspicuous absence of 60 legislators has raised uncomfortable questions for the leadership. With reports of growing dissatisfaction among elected representatives and public hostility towards party leaders in several districts, the aborted meeting underscored the difficulties staring at Mamata as she attempts to rebuild the organisation from the Opposition benches.
On June 1, the TMC ousted MLAs Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha for anti-party activity. The two had purportedly divulged the “information” that signatures were allegedly forged by the legislative party to elect Shobhandeb Chatterjee as leader of the Opposition. The case is being investigated by the CID.
The coming days, particularly the party’s planned protests and Mamata’s June 2 demonstration, are likely to provide the first indication of whether the Trinamool can successfully rally its legislators and cadre after one of the most significant electoral setbacks in its history.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
