"Free to leave": Mamata Banerjee issues stern message to defectors at post-poll review meet

KOLKATA: In the wake of a crushing defeat in the state assembly elections, Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo and former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has urged party workers to spearhead a comprehensive organisational overhaul. Addressing a crucial worker's meet at her Kalighat residence in Kolkata, Banerjee also delivered a stern message to potential defectors, stating that the party would not impede anyone wishing to exit during this challenging transition.

Affirming her resolve to revive the party's fortunes, Banerjee emphasised that she would personally lead the efforts to restore the TMC to its former glory and rebuild party offices damaged in the aftermath of the polls. She asserted that the party would remain resilient and refuse to capitulate under pressure. The high-level meeting was attended by senior leadership, including TMC National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee and several contesting candidates.

Following the meeting, the official All India Trinamool Congress handle on social media platform X issued a statement of solidarity, commending the candidates for their resilience. The party praised their unwavering courage in the face of what it described as unprecedented atrocities and continuous intimidation throughout the election campaign. Underscoring that the TMC stands cohesive as a single family under the leadership of Mamata and Abhishek Banerjee, the statement declared that the party would never bow to forces attempting to subvert the public mandate, concluding with the assurance that truth will ultimately prevail.