In recent developments from West Bengal, two Trinamool Congress MLAs and over 50 councillors joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday. A CPM MLA has also joined the BJP. These developments come as a huge boost to the BJP who has already been successful in making deep inroads in the state by winning on 18 seats in West Bengal in recently concluded elections. In the process, the BJP also increased its vote share to 40.25 % in 2019. The ruling Trinamool won 22 seats in the Lok Sabha election this year, down from 34 in the general election in 2014.
TMC MLAs Subhranshu Roy, Tusharkanti Bhattacharjee, and CPM MLA Devendra Roy joined BJP today in Delhi. Subhranshu is the son of BJP leader Mukul Roy and had been suspended by TMC recently.
Subhranshu Roy was suspended from the party for six years for his anti-party comments. He arrived in Delhi on Monday, along with the others and his father Mukul Roy.
“Today I have no qualms in accepting that I have lost to my father. He is a real Chanakya of Bengal politics. Our party has lost and people voted against us. We should accept it,” Subhranshu said after being expelled from TMC.
“Three MLAs and 50-60 Councillors are joining BJP today. Such joining will continue in future also,” Kailash Vijayvargiya, BJP National General Secretary told ANI.
Mukul Roy, addressing the press conference where the ex-TMC leaders formally joined BJP, said that it was first of seven such events.”Just like seven-phased Lok Sabha elections, there will be seven phases of TMC defectors joining BJP,” Mukul Roy said. On the accusations on horse trading by BJP, Mukul Roy said, “Horse trading is being done by TMC. After panchayat polls, she tried to buy over or threaten our people into jumping ship.”
“In the West Bengal assembly election in 2021, TMC will not even get the Opposition party position,” Mukul Roy claimed.
Further multiplying problems for Mamata Banerjee led TMC in the state; these defections only indicate the rising sentiment in the state against Mamata’s autocratic rule and failed governance policies. Mamata Banerjee’s arrogance has not only harmed the federal workings of the government machinery but has also resulted in exponentially deteriorating state of law and order in West Bengal. 2019 General election in West Bengal were also plagued by TMC led violence, in meek attempts to suppress the huge anti-TMC current in the state. Recently Mamata’s government was also called out for detaining three individuals for chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’. A state which has been seeing perpetual violence first under the communist regimes and now under Mamata’s autocratic dispensation has given a befitting reply to the TMC in this general election.
In the run-up to the elections, PM Modi had hinted that as much as 40 MLAs might jump ship from the TMC to the BJP. “As of date, a total of 40 Trinamool MLAs are in touch with me. Didi, they will dump your party after lotus blooms all over the state when Lok Sabha election results are out on 23 May,” PM Modi was reported saying. Today’s developments are surely in sync with PM Modi’s comments.