13 opposition MLAs join TMC since 2011 when Mamata Banerjee became chief minister

KOLKATA: Altogether 13 MLAs from different political parties like Congress, CPIM, Forward Bloc and RSP have left their mother parties and joined Trinamool Congress ever since May 2011 when Mamata Banerjee became the chief minister. More legislators from these parties are likely to join the ruling Trinamool Congress before next Assembly elections in West Bengal scheduled for 2016.
This is completely unprecedented and such incidents had never taken place in West Bengal during 34-year rule of the Marxists. It is the Congress which suffered most as nine of their sitting MLAs have left the party and joined Mamata Banerjee's camp. Some more Congress MLAs will join the ruling party before 2016 Assembly elections in the state.

Key Congress MLAs who joined Trinamool are Ajoy De, who was the vice-president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) and a member of the All India Congress Committee (AICC). Another Congress MLA from Bankura district, Soumitra Khan left the party a few months before the lok sabha elections and Mamata Banerjee had given him a ticket to contest the Bishnupur lok sabha. Khan won the seat and now a Trinamool Congress MP.

Krishnendu Narayan Chowdhury was a Congress MLA from Malda district who joined Trinamool Congress. Mamata had made him a minister in her cabinet. Same was the story with another Congress MLA from Murshidabad district Humayun Kabir. After Kabir joined Trinamool Congress by snapping ties with his mother party, Mamata gifted him a berth in her cabinet.

But Kabir could not continue as a minister because he lost a by-election which he had contested on a Trinamool Congress ticket from the same Murshidabad district. Kabir lost the by-election because he fought the polls from Murshidabad district which is still considered to be a Congress stronghold. Murshidabad is also the home town of the state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

Apart from Khan and Chowdhury, the other Congress MLAs who joined Trinamool Congress included Asit Mal, Mohammad Golam Rabbani, Umapara Bauri, Ajoy De, Imami Biswas and Sushil Roy. State Congress insiders hinted that some of their MLAs like Joseph Munda, Keshab Roy, Nepal Mahato and Shankar Malakar were likely to quit the party to join Trinamool Congress before 2016 assembly elections.



State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has taken a very strong exception to the defection of his party MLAs. "I simply call these MLAs as political opportunists. These people are greedy and have craze for power. I just want Mamata Banerjee to ensure victories of these people's representatives from the constituencies which they won in 2011 on Congress tickets," Chowdhury, when asked to react on the development, told ET.

He also made it clear that the state Congress leadership as well as the party high command had taken a very strong exception to this development. "In future, none of these MLAs would be able to rejoin the Congress. We will also ask the speaker of the legislative Assembly to terminate membership of these MLAs."

The Congress, which contested the 2011 Assembly elections jointly with Trinamool Congress, had won 42 seats out of total 65 which they had fought. But now the party has just 33 MLAs in the state legislature as 9 of their sitting MLAs have left the party and joined Trinamool Congress. The state Congress had once demanded opposition party's status in the state legislature as they won 42 seats against 40 won by the CPIM. But now, the Congress is not in a position to reiterate their demand as CPIM has more number of MLAs than the Congress. The CPIM had won 40 seats in 2011 and has now 39 MLAs after one of their MLAs joined the ruling party.

The only CPIM MLA who joined Trinamool Congress is Chhaya Dolui. She won the Chandrakona assembly seat in Jangalmahal which was once a Maoist stronghold. But the state CPIM leadership is not ready to describe Dolui as a political opportunist. "Dolui was forced to quit CPIM. We consider her as a great fighter who, despite her limitations, worked as our MLA by ignoring threats and intimidation of the ruling party. We are certain that Dolui was under pressure to join the ruling party," CPIM state secretary and politburo member Biman Bose said.

Two RSP MLAs Anantadeb Adhikary and Dasarath Tirkey had left the party and joined Trinamool Congress. Mamata had given ticket to Tirkey to contest the lok sabha elections this time and he is now a Trinamool MP from Alipurduar lok sabha constituency in north Bengal. Tirkey joined Trinamool a few months before the lok sabha polls.

Forward Bloc MLA from Galsi assembly seat in Burdwan district, Sunil Mandal also joined Trinamool Congress. Interestingly, all these RSP and Bloc MLAs had voted for Trinamool Congress candidates in the Rajya Sabha elections held in February this year.