In Rajya Sabha, Mukul’s seat shifted to make way for Derek

Admitting that he has received a letter from the Rajya Sabha Secretariat regarding this, Roy said over phone from Delhi: “Yes, I have received a letter this morning but I do not want to react to it.”

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Asked about speculations that he will join the BJP along with around 30 MLAs, Roy said: “Those are perceptions and there is a difference between those and reality,” he said.

On the “members” of his camp, he said, “There is no such thing as my camp. They are all active and efficient members of Trinamool, who help the party come out with flying colours.”

On Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wishing to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Roy said the Chief Minister will meet the Prime Minister with the demands of the state. “This is how things are in a federal structure. There is nothing wrong in it,” he added.

Trinamool Congress, on Saturday, had removed Roy — a former confidante of Mamata — from the key post of party general secretary, a day after he was replaced as the party’s leader in the Rajya Sabha.

Roy had stated it was the prerogative of the party and said “only future will tell” whether the decision to replace him was “right or wrong”.

BJP rubbishes report of Roy-Shah meeting

Amid speculation of Trinamool leader Mukul Roy joining the saffron party, BJP on Monday said there is no truth in such stories and denied Roy’s meeting with national party president Amit Shah.

“It is an utter lie. There was no meeting between Amit Shah and Mukul Roy. There is no truth in speculative stories,” BJP national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh told reporters here. Alleging that TMC and CPM were hand in glove to stop the BJP in the state, Singh said, “There is only one truth — that is vote for CPM is a vote for TMC.”