Mamata Banerjee under pressure as MPs and MLAs stay away from party meeting

KOLKATA: The political crisis within the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal appears to be deepening, with reports suggesting that more MLAs and MPs may join the rebel camp after a group of 60 dissident legislators reportedly broke ranks with the party leadership. Reports claim that only eight MLAs and six MPs were present in a meeting convened by former Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday. The MPs who attended the meeting included members from both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

The Trinamool Congress currently has 29 MPs in the Lok Sabha, but only four of them attended the meeting. In the Rajya Sabha, the party has 13 MPs, of whom 11 reportedly stayed away from the gathering. Among the MPs who attended the meeting was Mamata Banerjee's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee.

The MLAs present at the meeting were Madan Mitra, Bina Mondal, Ashima Patra, Firhad Hakim, Kunal Ghosh, Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, Biman Banerjee and Ashok Deb.

The rebel group was formed by around 60 MLAs under the leadership of Ritabrata Banerjee following a dispute with Trinamool Congress president Mamata Banerjee. The rift became public after a meeting convened by Ritabrata on Thursday. However, a section of MLAs maintains that despite the differences within the party, Mamata Banerjee should continue as the leader of the Trinamool Congress. After taking charge as the Opposition Leader on Wednesday, Ritabrata told the media that he has no intention of splitting the party.