Mamata Banerjee-Led TMC Expels Firhad Hakim, Aroop Roy and Six Others Amid Deepening Party Rift
The Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Tuesday expelled eight leaders, including former Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim, Javed Ahmed Khan, Sabina Yasmin, Arup Roy, Rathin Ghosh, Biplab Mitra, Aroop Biswas and Snehasis Chakraborty, citing alleged anti-party activities.
The expulsions came a day after the dissident faction of the party announced the removal of Mamata Banerjee as TMC chairperson and suspended her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee. The leaders expelled on Tuesday are part of the rebel camp led by Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee.
Earlier in the day, the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) issued show-cause notices to the eight leaders over what it described as “anti-party” activities.
Meanwhile, Mamata Banerjee’s faction submitted a list to the Election Commission of India (ECI) identifying her as the Chairperson of the AITC. The list names Subrata Bakshi as vice president, Abhishek Banerjee as national general secretary and Lok Sabha leader, Derek O’Brien as joint secretary and Rajya Sabha leader, Dola Sen as joint secretary, and Subhasish Chakraborty as treasurer.
On Monday, the rebel TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee announced the removal of Mamata Banerjee from the party’s top post and the suspension of Abhishek Banerjee. The dissidents claimed they represent the “real Trinamool” and said they would approach the Election Commission to stake their claim.
“It is not about what is real or not real. We are TMC and will inform the Election Commission about today’s special session proceedings,” Ritabrata Banerjee said.
“We have functioned and convened this special session as per the norms. It is for the EC to decide what is wrong or right,” he added.
The rebel faction also constituted a 30-member National Working Committee (NWC). Ritabrata Banerjee reiterated that he wanted Mamata Banerjee to continue playing a guiding role within the party.
“We have repeatedly stated our stance regarding Mamata Banerjee’s role within the TMC. We want ‘Didi’ to assume the responsibility of a mentor and guide us,” he said.
The dissident camp elected MLA Arup Roy as the new chairperson of the party. Former minister Aroop Biswas and MLAs Firhad Hakim, Rathin Ghosh and Sabina Yasmin were appointed as vice-chairpersons.
Ritabrata Banerjee also said district presidents and district committees would be constituted in the coming days.
According to the dissident faction, it has the support of at least 60 of the TMC’s 80 legislators. The group further claimed that 20 of the party’s 28 Lok Sabha MPs have already broken away and merged with the Nationalist Citizens’ Party of India.