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Trinamool Congress MLA from Pandabeswar Jitendra Tiwari recently criticised his own party, making him the latest addition in an increasing list of TMC leaders to speak out against the party of late.
Tiwari wrote a letter to West Bengal’s Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim, citing the lack of development work in his constituency. He said that the state government did not allow him to take Rs 2,000 crore from the central government for developmental work under the Smart City Mission Project.
TMC’s critics are citing this as a sign of turmoil within the party. One issue being raised by many of the “dissenters” is the role of political strategist Prashant Kishor, who has been instrumental in several changes since he’s joined. These changes may not have gone down well with some senior leaders. They complain that an “outsider” is taking major calls in the TMC, "destroying the fabric of the party”.
One of the first leaders to speak against Kishor was ex-TMC MLA from Cooch Behar Mihir Goswami, who later switched sides to the BJP. He was with the party since its inception in 1998. He claims that he wanted to bring development in North Bengal and alleged that the area had remained neglected.
Cooch Behar's Sitai MLA Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia backed Goswami on this.
The second big name on the list is ex-Transport Minister Suvendu Adhikary, who is feeling sidelined in the party, especially after Kishor came into the scene. Adhikary had been instrumental in the Nandigram anti-land acquisition protests (which ultimately led to the downfall of the Left government in 2011) and making significant inroads for the party in the Jangalmahal area, Malda and Murshidabad. He is said to have made his displeasure towards Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee and Kishor known.
This statement of his was seen as a veiled dig at the duo:
Adhikary had been conducting independent rallies without the TMC banner since May before resigning from all his posts in November. He has also stopped attending all cabinet meetings. Despite no formal announcement, rumours are afloat that he is likely to join the BJP soon.
Despite a meeting with TMC stalwart Saugata Roy, Sudip Bandhopadhyay, Abhishek Banerjee and Prashant Kishor, Adhikary in a WhatsApp conversation with Roy, said that his “issues were not resolved and conclusions were being drawn regardless” which will make it “difficult for us to work together”.
Others on the list include TMC MLA from Barrackpore, Silbhadra Dutta, who said that the TMC leadership should have done more to redress his grievances. He expressed his desire to not fight the polls and talks with him failed.
Singur MLA Rabindranath Bhattacharya who, too, played a vital role in the anti-land acquisition movement and Arambagh MLA Krishnachandra Santra openly criticised Kishor and the direction in which the TMC leadership is heading.
Bhattacharya criticized the TMC over development work in Singur and the choosing of the block president.
Santra alleged that the core committee in his constituency failed to give importance to his grievances.
State Forest Minister Rajib Banerjee and Consumer Affairs Minister Sadhan Pande, too, hit out at the functioning of the party. They alleged that the anger and displeasure of senior leaders were not being addressed by the top brass.
Soon after the rally, posters of him without the party motif were seen across Kolkata.
The former deputy mayor of Kolkata and veteran leader, Atin Ghosh, too, felt that the "old guard" was being sidelined.
The latest on this increasing list is Pandabeswar MLA Jitendra Tiwari, whose grouse is that the state government allegedly did not allow him to take funds from the central government under the Smart City Mission Project. Here’s what he wrote in his letter to the urban development minister:
Tiwari has also resigned from two posts he held in government bodies.
However, those close to Kishor and Abhishek Banerjee say that they are streamlining processes in the party and this may affect those who had been acting as parallel power centres in certain areas. They say that it was essential to set up these processes for more efficient governance and political communication.
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Published: 15 Dec 2020,09:22 PM IST