Trinamool senior leader Suvendhu Adhikari is likely to resign from the party as well, sources say (File)
Calcutta:
Trinamool Congress Leader Suvendu Adhikari resigned today as cabinet minister in the Mamata Banerjee government, sending his resignation letter to the Chief Minister and an email copy to Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar.
“Today at 1:05 pm I was sent a letter of resignation from Mr. Suvendu Adhikari from his position as Minister addressed to the Honorable Chief Minister. The issue will be addressed from a constitutional perspective,” the governor tweeted.
Adhikari, who headed the transport and irrigation ministries, remains a member of the party and a member of the MLA, for now. Sources, however, say that he, too, is likely to resign from the party. Adhikari is reportedly heading to Delhi on Saturday and the big question is: will he join the BJP?
Today at 1:05 pm I have been sent a letter of resignation from Mr. Suvendu Adhikari from his post as Minister addressed to the Honorable Chief Minister.
The subject will be approached from a constitutional perspective. pic.twitter.com/cxjF68uomH– Governor of West Bengal, Jagdeep Dhankhar (@ jdhankhar1) November 27, 2020
In his concise letter, the screenshot of which was attached to the governor’s tweet, Mr. Adhikari said: “I thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve the people of the State, which I did with commitment, dedication and sincerity.”
Mr. Adhikari calls for steps to be taken for “immediate acceptance” of his resignation.
The representative of the Bengal Nandigram constituency, Suvendu Adhikari, has, for the past three months, expressed his discontent within the party. He skipped party and cabinet meetings and attended rallies where there were no Trinamool posters or portraits of Ms. Banerjee.
A senior Trinamool leader was quoted by the PTI news agency as saying: “A war of nerves has started between the leadership and Mr. Adhikari.”
Over the past two weeks, Trinamool has made some efforts to get closer to the disgruntled senior leader. At least two meetings were held in Kolktata, but none of them represented a breakthrough.
Adhikari’s main source of complaint was the growing prominence of Ms Banerjee’s nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, the Diamond Harbor MP, in deciding party affairs. He was also unhappy about the Trinamool’s growing reliance on survey master strategist Prashant Kishor.
Mr. Kishor traveled 150 km from Calcutta to meet him at his Kanthi home in the East Midnapore district earlier this month. However, Mr. Adhikari was not at home and did not return until after Prashant Kishor returned to Calcutta.
Sources have said that Adhikari may reconsider his decision to resign if he gains more organizational control than Abhishek Banerjee. However, the same sources say that such a move is unlikely.
Another senior Trinamool leader, Saugata Roy, emphasized this week that Adhikari remained a key member of the party. “You should have seen his procession and understood that he would not do anything against the party. He strongly agrees with the party,” he said, referring to a march in the Nandigram area of the East Midnapore district.
Mr. Adhikari, in addition to East Midnapore (where he comes from) influences between 35 and 40 constituency constituencies of the assembly that are located in the Jangalmahal tribal area and parts of the Birbhum district.
With input from PTI
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