Mukul Roy and Suvendu Adhikari elected to West Bengal PAC inspite of BJP's objection

In a controversial move, 20 West Bengal MLAs have been elected to the Committee on Public Accounts (PAC) on Thursday, which includes BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari and TMC's Mukul Roy. The PAC which is elected as per each party's representation in the Assembly, mainly consists of TMC MLAs. The saffron party has opposed Mukul Roy's election to PAC as he had contested on a BJP ticket and later switched to TMC. Mukul Roy and his son returned to Trinamool after a 4-year BJP term, triggering a possible return of several TMC turncoats after BJP's Bengal loss.

20 MLAs elected to PAC

BJP objects to Mukul Roy's PAC nomination

On Thursday, BJP wrote to Bengal Speaker Biman Banerjee challenging Roy's nomination to the PAC stating that the PAC is constituted on the basis of proportional representation of the parties that contested and won the seats. Pointing out that Mukul Roy is an MLA from Krishnanagar Uttar who contested on a BJP ticket, but switched to TMC later, BJP stated that he has neither resigned from the Assembly nor was he disqualified under the anti-defection law. "The question remains as to whether Mukul Roy's representation is from BJP or TMC. The BJP has not recommended his name in the Public Accounts Committee," BJP said adding that TMC's Arun Kumar Maity and Independent MLA Ruden Pratap Lepcha are the proposers of Roy's nomination and not the saffron party.

Mukul Roy rejoins TMC

On June 11, Mukul and Subhranshu Roy rejoined the Trinamool Congress in the presence of CM Mamata Banerjee and TMC General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee at the party's Kolkata headquarters, after a 4-year BJP term. Roy and his son had hinted at their exit when Roy skipped an important organizational meeting of the saffron party and his silence on the post-poll violence. Miffed at being sidelined for Suvendu Adhikari, who was elected as Leader of Opposition, Roy stated that "No one will remain in BJP in the current scenario", while rejoining TMC. Sources have reported that ex-BJP Vice President Mukul Roy is set to be made Trinamool Vice-President. Roy's peer Suvendu Adhikari who joined the BJP has sought to invoke the anti-defection law against MLA Mukul Roy if he does not resign soon.

Roy had resigned from TMC in September 2017 and joined BJP two months later. Subsequently, he was made the national vice-president of the BJP in September 2020. While he won the Krishnanagar North seat in Nadia district, his son Subhrangshu who joined the party in May 2019 was defeated from the Bijpur seat from where he was the incumbent MLA. Mamata Banerjee managed to halt the BJP juggernaut, retaining Bengal with TMC winning 213 seats whereas BJP could win in only 77 constituencies.