News Analysis India

Tag: Trinamool Congress

  • Goa Assembly polls: Former MGP MLA Lavu Mamlatdar to join Trinamool Congress

    By PTI

    PANAJI: Former Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MLA Lavu Mamladar on Monday said he would be joining the Trinamool Congress and was keen to contest the 2022 Goa Assembly polls from Madkaim, a stronghold of MGP chief Sudin Dhavalikar.

    Mamlatdar, a former police officer who represented Ponda seat between 2012 and 2017, said he had been in discussions with the Mamata Banerjee-led party since September 1 and would be joining it formally in Kolkata on Tuesday.

    “I would like to contest the 2022 Assembly polls from Madkaim,” he told reporters.

  • Get ready, Trinamool Congress is going to Goa: Abhishek Banerjee

    By ANI

    KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress (TMC) general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday said the party will explore political opportunities outside West Bengal and will enter the poll scene in Goa in the coming days.

    Addressing a public meeting in Bhabanipur, Banerjee said, “This election is not only to vote for Mamata Banerjee. See the condition of India. There are five or six national parties but among those only TMC has the courage to fight on the street and take the issues forward. It is not just for Bhabanipur, you are giving your verdict for Delhi. People will give votes for TMC to bring changes in Delhi.”

    Bhabanipur bypoll, scheduled on September 30 has become a prestige battle for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is presently not an MLA. Notably, Mamata Banerjee was defeated by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in the Nandigram constituency in the Assembly elections held earlier this year.

    Following this, the Bhabanipur Assembly seat was vacated by the West Bengal Agriculture Minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay in May, making way for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to contest from Bhabanipur seat as a move to continue to hold her post.

    The Diamond Harbour MP said not only in West Bengal, but TMC will also register a victory in other states in the coming days

    “We have already started work in Tripura and Assam. Get ready…In the coming days, TMC is going to Goa. I will go to UP, Haryana and Gujarat. You (BJP) cannot stop us. With the image of Mamata Banerjee, we will fight and take you out of Delhi,” he said.

    The TMC leader alleged that BJP-ruled centre is using the central agencies to scare the political opponents.

    “BJP is not able to fight politically with TMC. So they are bringing agencies to intimidate us. They have sent me five ED notice… If they send me 50 such notices still I will not bow down my head,” Banerjee added.

    Meanwhile, sources said that former Goa Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Luizinho Faleiro will join the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Monday. He is likely to hold a press conference today where he may announce his departure from the party.

    Assembly elections in Goa are due early next year.

  • Vote for TMC if you want me to continue as CM: Mamata Banerjee asks people

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: Asserting that there is no dearth of leaders in her party who can become the chief minister of West Bengal, Trinamool Congress candidate Mamata Banerjee on Thursday urged people to vote for her in the Bhabanipur by-poll if they want her to continue at the helm of the state government.

    Speaking at a public meeting for the September 30 by-election, the state chief minister asked the people of the Bhabanipur assembly constituency in south Kolkata to cast their votes even if it rains on the day of polling.

    Heavy rain has been occurring in the state for the last four months, Banerjee said.

    “My party has the majority. There is no dearth of people who can become the chief minister. But if you want me to continue, bless me with your votes…Even if cyclone or tornado comes, come and cast your vote,” she said addressing the gathering.

    The chief minister said allegations made by the BJP that she does not allow holding of Durga Puja or Laxmi puja in West Bengal were not true.

    “I want to ask the BJP to answer before asking for votes in Bhabanipur, why Section 144 (CrPC) has been imposed in Tripura, imposing restrictions on Durga puja, Navratri, Laxmi Puja celebrations there,” she said, asserting that she never does such things.

    The Tripura government recently informed the high court there that prohibitory order under Section 144 CrPC has been imposed in the Sadar subdivision of West Tripura district, under which state capital Agartala falls, from September 21 till November 4 as part of the precautionary measure to prevent the third wave of the pandemic.

    The TMC postponed its proposed rally led by party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee after the court denied permission to hold it.

    The TMC supremo, who has been visiting temples, gurdwaras and mosques within the constituency since filing nomination papers for Bhabanipur, which has a mixed linguistic and religious demography, began her campaign on Thursday evening by offering obeisance at the Jain temple in Chakraberia.

    “India starts from Bhabanipur as B stands for Bhabanipur, Bharat Mata and Bharat Varsh,” she said.

    Stating that she had faced physical attacks while fighting the CPI(M) during its three-decade-long rule, Banerjee said she was injured during her campaign at Nandigram during the assembly election held earlier this year and was forced to canvass for the party on a wheelchair for one-and-a-half months.

    Banerjee had lost the election in Nandigram by a narrow margin to her former aide Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP, who is now the leader of the opposition in the West Bengal assembly.

    The Nandigram election is however subject to an ongoing court challenge.

    The Bhabanipur seat was vacated by winning MLA Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay to make way for his party leader.

    At the meeting, Banerjee said she had gone to fight from Nandigram in support of farmers who were demanding repeal of three farm laws enacted by the Centre.

    She said that it is good that she has got the opportunity to fight from Bhabanipur and that the chief minister will be from this constituency only.

    Referring to top national-level saffron party leaders campaigning in West Bengal during the eight-phase assembly elections, she said the BJP should remember that “daily passengers” will not help win elections here.

    “Nobody could think Trinamool Congress would win with such a huge margin, but I had a hunch of winning 221 seats,” she said, claiming that the number will soon be achieved with some of the BJP fence-sitters will join the ruling party.

    Banerjee said more than 99 per cent of the people of Bhabanipur have been vaccinated against Covid-19, while over 80 per cent of the eligible people of the entire city have been inoculated.

    She said one should look at the number of Covid-related deaths in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.

    “Some say there are no correct figures (of coronavirus deaths) in Gujarat and its chief minister has been changed,” the TMC boss said, without elaborating on it.

    She alleged that bodies of many people who died of Covid were dumped in the river Ganga in Uttar Pradesh, claiming that her government fished out those bodies in Malda and cremated them with due respect.

    “We hope that the predicted third wave (of the pandemic) does not strike, but our preparations to deal with it are complete,” Banerjee said.

  • West Bengal BJP to give more spotlight on local leaders to take on rival Trinamool Congress

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The BJP in West Bengal is bracing to groom new generation of leadership with a focus on leaders who can match the street power of the ruling Trinamool Congress. The central leaders and those from outside are likely to stay away to allow the rise of the local leadership.

    The BJP has seemingly taken the view that the party will now need to grow slowly without the ‘quick’ help of turncoats. It is also learnt to have decided that the task of bypoll campaign in the eastern state will remain with the local leadership.

    The appointment of BJP MP Sukanta Majumdar is in line with the strategy to pass on the baton to the younger leaders who can withstand the “pressure tactics” of the TMC. “The BJP will stick to growing slowly. It’s going to be a long journey, and the leaders who are relatively younger will be shouldering much of the responsibilities in the state,” said a senior BJP functionary.

    The BJP has assigned the task to see through the bypoll campaign to the state co-incharge Amit Malviya. Unlike the Assembly elections, the BJP is learnt to be not fielding leaders from outside even as it seeks to put up a spirited contest against Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur. 

    The BJP functionary stated that the party leaders are being slapped with a spate of criminal cases in the state. “Bengal is posing a lot of challenges, including intimidation. It’s going to be a  case of survival of the fittest. But, the BJP will hold out strongly by promoting the young leadership.” said the functionary.

    The BJP, incidentally, had fielded a full battery of its leaders from other states in Bengal during the Assembly elections, which was seen to have been exploited by the ruling TMC to build the local versus outsider narrative against the saffron outfit. 

  • Abhishek Banerjee should go on nationwide Yatra to learn how to behave with Opposition: Bengal BJP chief

    By ANI

    KOLKATA: Taking a dig at Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee over his Padyatra in Tripura, newly-appointed president of West Bengal BJP Sukanta Majumdar on Tuesday said Banerjee needs to walk across the country to learn how to behave with the Opposition.

    TMC is looking to expand its footprint in the northeast and in line with this the party had planned a padyatra led by Abhishek Bannerjee in Tripura. However, the Padytra has not been held so far as permission has not been given by the administration.

    When asked about Abhishek Banerjee’s Padyatra, Majumdar said, “Abhishek Banerjee must go on a yatra across the country so that he can learn how to behave with the Opposition.”

    Briefing media persons, Majumdar said, “From 3 to 77 is itself a huge success in Bengal. However, there might be something missing in the strategy that we could not win the elections. Some of the seats we lost by a very small margin.”

    Former West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said the party has taken a far-sighted decision by giving responsibility to Sukanta Majumdar.

    Speaking to media persons, Ghosh said, “I have more experience so the party has given me a bigger responsibility. I held a meeting with the party national president after the polls and told him about my duties. My mission is now half complete.”

    “When we started five years ago, things in Bengal were different. No one even uttered BJP’s name. Now it has become the main opposition party. Our power is equal to TMC. I think the party has taken a far-sighted decision by giving such responsibility to Sukanta babu,” he added.

    BJP national President, Jagat Prakash Nadda on Monday appointed Dr Sukanta Majumdar as the State party president for the West Bengal unit. 

  • TMC-led civic body puts off opening of quarantine centres until after Bhowanipore bypoll

    Express News Service

    KOLKATA: The chief health officer of the Trinamool Congress-led Kolkata Municipal Corporation in a recent advisory said institutional quarantine and safe home services may be reopened in the municipality after September 30—the day when the high-decibel by-election is scheduled to be held in south Kolkata’s Bhowanipore. 

    “Institutional quarantine and Safe Home services may be reopened if required (but after 30.09.2021 after Bhowanipore Assembly Election) to contain Covid situation in Kolkata during and after Durga and Kali pujas,” reads the advisory. It comes amid a rise in Covid cases in the West Bengal capital. 

    The Covid advisory mentioning the bypoll date has made some TMC leaders uneasy. They feel the BJP may now capitalise on this and demand that the election, which Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee must win to continue as CM, be put off. 

    “The BJP was against the by-election citing the pandemic. But, she needs to get elected as an MLA within November 5 to continue as CM, and if the by-election is deferred, she will have no option but to step down from the post of state CM,” said a senior TMC leader.

    “No one knows what will be the pandemic situation a week from now. How can we set up a time frame for opening quarantine centres and safe home facilities?” asked an official of the state health department. The advisory did not miss the BJP’s attention. The party’s Bengal chapter said it shows the state government is trying to distort the true picture.

    “If quarantine centres and safe homes are reopened before the bypoll, the question of conducting the election amid the pandemic may be raised. This why the advisory clearly mentioned the facilities can be reopened after the by-election,’’ said a BJP leader.

  • Bhowanipore bypoll: BJP accuses Mamata Banerjee of violating COVID norms during campaigning

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The BJP on Thursday complained to the Election Commission alleging that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee violated COVID norms set by the EC while campaigning for the Bhowanipore bypoll.

    Banerjee, also the Trinamool Congress supremo, is contesting from Bhowanipore where by-election will be held on September 30.

    In a letter to the EC, Sajal Ghosh, the chief election agent of BJP candidate for the constituency, Priyanka Tibrewal, claimed that Banerjee, during a visit to a Gurudwara on Wednesday, was accompanied by a large number of supporters in violation of norms.

    “On September 15, the TMC candidate violated the Covid guidelines and Model Code of Conduct while visiting the Bhawanipur Gurudwara,” Ghosh said in his letter to the Returning Officer for the assembly segment.

    He claimed that her supporters also flouted Covid norms by not wearing masks and they did not use sanitiser. The TMC dubbed the allegations as “baseless and politically motivated”.

  • Tripura rally: West Bengal BJP slams TMC’s ‘double standards’ on holding political programmes

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The BJP on Tuesday accused the Trinamool Congress of practising double standards in following the Disaster Management Act, claiming that the Mamata Banerjee-led party is not allowing the opposition to hold political programmes citing COVID-related restrictions in West Bengal but seeks to conduct a rally in Tripura.

    The Tripura police on Monday denied permission to the TMC for holding a rally in Agartala on September 15 and 16.

    The TMC, however, claimed that the saffron party has no moral right to talk about conducting political programmes in COVID time as it did not ask the Election Commission (EC) to club the last phases of the assembly election in April when there was a surge in coronavirus cases in the state.

    “Despite following COVID-19 protocols, our numerous programmes in recent times were stopped by the police. They cite the Disaster Management Act to thwart the activities of the opposition. How can the same Trinamool vows to take out a rally in Tripura in violation of the Covid restrictions imposed by the administration?” West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said.

    After permission was sought to conduct a rally on September 15 in Agartala, the sub-divisional police officer (sadar) of West Tripura district told the TMC in a letter on Monday that it cannot be given as there is a scheduled programme of another political party.

    In another letter issued also on Monday, the same officer said permission cannot be granted to hold the programme on September 16 “since there will be law & order commitment of Police in view of Viswakarma Puja” on Friday.

    Ghosh also charged the TMC with making sustained efforts to disrupt the “peaceful situation” in Tripura. Senior TMC leaders of West Bengal are visiting the North-eastern state to build an organisational base in the run-up to the 2023 assembly election.

    Reacting to Ghosh’s comment, senior TMC leader West Bengal Transport minister Firhad Hakim claimed that the BJP has lost the moral right to talk about the appropriateness of holding political programmes in COVID time.

    “When there was a sharp spike in COVID cases in April, the BJP did not ask the EC to club the last phases of assembly polls and showed scant regard for public health. It was only the Trinamool Congress that repeatedly flagged the issue then,” Hakim said.

    The TMC on Monday postponed its proposed rally led by its general secretary Abhishek Banerjee in the Tripura capital, after the police denied permission for holding the programme on September 15 and 16, prompting the TMC leader to claim that the BJP is “scared to death” of the Mamata Banerjee-led party.

  • TMC nominates Sushmita Dev for Rajya Sabha bypoll

    By Express News Service

    KOLKATA: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Tuesday named Sushmita Dev, who recently joined the party after quitting the Congress, as its candidate for bypoll to a Rajya Sabha seat. The seat in the state fell vacant after Manas Bhunia quit the upper house having won assembly elections from Sabang in Paschim Medinipur.

    We are extremely pleased to nominate @SushmitaDevAITC to the Upper House of the Parliament.@MamataOfficial’s vision to empower women and ensure their maximum participation in politics shall help our society to achieve much more!
    — All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) September 14, 2021
    Bypoll to six Rajya Sabha seats, including the one in Bengal, will be held on October 4. “We are extremely pleased to nominate @SushmitaDevAITC to the Upper House of the Parliament. @MamataOfficial’s vision to empower women and ensure their maximum participation in politics shall help our society to achieve much more!” the party tweeted.

    Dev, who was one of the national spokespersons of the grand old party and its women’s wing chief, switched over to the Mamata Banerjee-led camp last month. She has been assigned the job of looking after party’s functioning in Assam and Tripura.

    Dev, a prominent face in Tripura politics where the TMC is trying to get foothold before the Assembly elections scheduled to be held in 2013, was overwhelmed with TMC’s announcement. 

    “I am extremely grateful to Mamatadi and Abhishek (Banerjee). I don’t know whether I deserve it or not, but I will do my best to take party’s vision forward. It is great to see that she (Mamata) wants more women in Parliament,” Sushmita said. 

    According to political observers, the TMC’s nomination is significant as Sushmita has been campaigning in Assam and Tripura with a goal to expand the party’s influence in the northeast.

  • ‘TMC trying to kill me’: BJP MP Arjun Singh after another bomb explosion outside his residence

    By PTI

    KOLKATA:  Less than a week after miscreants hurled bombs at BJP MP Arjun Singh’s residence in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas, similar explosions were reported outside his home on Tuesday morning, with the saffron party leader claiming that members of the ruling TMC were trying to take his life.

    A police officer said that around 9:10 am, bombs exploded on a vacant patch of land, which is just about 200 metres away from Singh’s Bhatpara residence. “We are investigating the matter. Our officers are there,” he added.

    8 सितंबर को मेरे घर के सामने बम फेंके गए थे और आज सुबह घर के पीछे।अपराधियों को कोई डर नहीं है क्योंकि उनको @AITCofficial और @WBPolice का संरक्षण प्राप्त है।अपराधी खुले घूम रहे हैं, पुलिस तृणमूल की ‘दलदास’ बनी है।ऐसे हमलों से ना कभी डरा था और न डरूँगा। @PMOIndia @HMOIndia pic.twitter.com/UIo6jd70HS
    — Arjun Singh (@ArjunsinghWB) September 14, 2021
    The NIA on Monday took over the probe into the incident on September 8, which left the gate at the BJP MP’s residence partially damaged. Singh alleged that it was an attack planned by the Trinamool Congress to kill him, his family members and people close to him. “This is nothing but a planned attack. The TMC is behind this…they are trying to kill me and my people. It’s goondaraaj (lawlessness) in Bengal,” Singh claimed.

    The TMC’s North 24 Parganas president, Partha Bhowmick, rubbished the allegations, and said that the BJP MP was in some way or the other responsible for the explosions outside his home.