Trouble Mounts For Mamata As Rebel TMC Camp Claims Its Tally Of MPs Has Jumped To 22

Kolkata: Trouble has mounted for Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee as the rebel camp is now claiming the support of two more Lok Sabha MPs, taking the tally to 22 parliamentarians. Kakoli Ghosh, who is reportedly leading the rebel camp, made the claim while going to Delhi to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

Kakoli Ghosh refused to divulge the names of the two new MPs who are set to formally join the dissident camp.

Suspended TMC leader Riju Dutta also said that two more MPs are likely to join the rebel camp, taking its tally to 22.

Till earlier this week it was claimed that the rebel faction had the support of 20 Lok Sabha MPs. On Saturday, Sudip Bandyopadhya, who has long been seen as a close aide of Mamata Banerjee, also joined the rebel faction and signed a letter requesting recognition of the camp as a separate parliamentary group within the TMC.

Names of 20 rebel MPs are now out in the open:

1. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar
2. Satabdi Roy
3. Bapi Haldar
4. Dr. Sharmila Sarkar
5. Prasun Bandyopadhyay
6. Jagadish Barma Basunia
7. Asit Kumar Mal
8. Arup Chakraborty
9. Rachna Banerjee
10. Saayoni Ghosh
11. Khalilur Rahaman
12. Abu Taher Khan
13. Yusuf Pathan
14. Mitali Bag
15. Mala Roy
16. Kalipada Soren
17. Deepak Adhikari
18. June Malia
19. Partha Bhowmick
20. Sudip Bandyopadhya

The rebel camp has the support of more than two-third of the strength of the TMC in the Lok Sabha.

The internal crisis within the TMC was triggered following a landslide defeat of the party in the state Assembly elections, where it won just 80 out of 294 seats and lost power after ruling over West Bengal for 15 years.

A political earthquake shook the party after the elections as several leaders expressed their dissent and resigned from their posts. The rebellion became visible in the Rajya Sabha as well as four TMC MPs tendered their resignations from the Upper House of the Parliament:

1. Sukhendu Sekhar Roy
2. Sushmita Dev
3. Koel Mallick
4. Prakash Chik Baraik

In the West Bengal Assembly as well, as many as 64 TMC MLAs have rebelled against Mamata Banerjee to support a rival faction under the leadership of Ritabrata Banerjee, who has been elected as the Leader of the Opposition in the House.