Mahua Moitra lashes out at rebel TMC MPs, challenges them to resign and contest elections

Kolkata: Following a crushing defeat at the hands of the BJP in the West Bengal Assembly elections, Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress appears to be fracturing. Initially, 60 party MLAs had shown signs of rebellion and decided to form a separate faction. Now, Trinamool Congress MPs have also adopted a rebellious stance. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, the Lok Sabha MP from Barasat, claimed on Monday that approximately 20 party MPs have expressed a desire to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and have submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

What did Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra say?

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has lashed out at the party's rebel MPs with sharp criticism. In a post on the social media platform X, she wrote, "The MPs won in 2024 on a Trinamool Congress ticket. The NDA did not receive the mandate. All the greedy, selfish, and treacherous ones—stained with yellow—should just join the BJP now; give up your seats and contest elections on a BJP ticket. Let's see what big heroes you turn out to be." Mahua Moitra also took aim at Yusuf Pathan, the Trinamool MP from Baharampur.

In a separate post on X, she wrote, "Yusuf Pathan, why are you going to Delhi just because Amit Shah has summoned you? Show some spine. You have played for India. Our district elected you with a massive majority. Have some shame and some courage." Mahua's post suggests that Yusuf Pathan is among the Trinamool Congress MPs who have turned rebellious. Earlier, while targeting the rebel MPs, Mahua Moitra had alleged that they had won elections solely by riding on Mamata Banerjee's popularity and lacked the courage to sit in the opposition.

Why is Mamata Banerjee in Delhi?

These developments have unfolded while Mamata Banerjee is in New Delhi, accompanied by Trinamool Congress National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee and several other senior party leaders. While Mamata was attending the INDIA bloc meeting on Monday, a group of dissident Trinamool Congress MPs gathered at the Motilal Nehru Marg residence of Union Minister and West Bengal BJP election in-charge Bhupender Yadav. Suvendu Adhikari also participated in this meeting.

Sources stated that several dissident MPs were present at the meeting, including Prasun Banerjee (Howrah), Sharmila Sarkar (Bardhaman Purba), Jagadish Chandra Basunia (Cooch Behar), Arup Chakraborty (Bankura), Kalipada Soren (Jhargram), Bapi Haldar (Mathurapur), and Asit Mal (Bolpur). The Trinamool Congress has a total of 28 MPs in the Lok Sabha. If 20 MPs form a separate faction, they would not face action under the anti-defection law; this is because the anti-defection law does not apply if two-thirds of a party's MPs or MLAs break away to form a separate group. If this dissident group of Trinamool MPs receives recognition, they could claim immunity from disqualification under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution.