In Fresh Jolt to Mamata Before Polls, Another TMC MLA Quits Days After Suvendu Adhikari's Resignation
18-December-2020

After Suvendu Adhikari, Trinamool Congress MLA Silbhadra Dutta resigned from the party on Friday. The legislator had expressed his desire not to fight polls, but the emissaries apparently failed to talk to him, following which the TMC had reached out to him.

Dutta said that the TMC leadership should have been more pro-active in redressing his grievances. After he declined to talk to officials of the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC), which is looking after the party's campaign strategy, about organisational matters, the TMC's North 24 Parganas district president went to the residence of Dutta two weeks ago but could not meet him as he was not at home.

The I-PAC is the organisation of poll strategist Prashant Kishor. "They had come to talk to me. I told them I would not discuss organisational matters with them.

It is not possible for me to take directions from a private agency on how politics or organisational work should be done," the two-time TMC MLA from Barrackpore said.

"Later, our district president Jyotipriyo Mullick called me up and expressed his desire to visit my place. I said he is welcome. But I would not change my decision on not to contest polls," Dutta said.

When asked whether he had informed the leadership of his grievances, the TMC leader said that the party is aware of everything but nothing has been done to redress them.

Datta has added to the list of disgruntled TMC MLAs along with Suvendu Adhikari, who had been troubling the TMC top brass for some time now. But besides them, several other MLAs and senior leaders have also openly spoken against the leadership, something which was unthinkable even a few years ago.

Many of them have directed their anger towards Prashant Kishor and his team � hired by the party to strengthen its poll prospects.

Singur MLA Rabindranath Bhattacharya, who had also played a vital role in the anti-land acquisition movement, Coochbehar South MLA Mihir Goswami and Arambagh MLA Krishnachandra Santra have openly criticised the leadership.

Goswami switched over to the BJP last week.