Rebel TMC MP Seeks Recognition as 'Real TMC' from Lok Sabha Speaker

Rebel TMC MP's Call for Recognition

Jagdish Burman Basunia, a dissident MP from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), has announced plans to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to request official recognition as the 'real TMC.' He indicated that they would also seek separate seating arrangements in the House. Basunia stated, "We have formed a faction called the 'real TMC.' Most MPs are with us." He emphasized that their request to the Speaker would focus on action rather than arrangements to sit alongside the other TMC faction. The meeting with the Speaker is scheduled for June 15.

When asked if he had received any communication from party chairperson Mamata Banerjee, Basunia replied that he had not received any calls and was unaware if any other MPs had been contacted. Following the party's defeat in the assembly elections, the TMC is grappling with internal strife. A significant faction of party legislators has turned rebellious, and they have been recognized as the 'opposition' in the Bengal assembly. This division has also impacted the party's parliamentary group.

Three TMC MPs have resigned from the Rajya Sabha, and the rebel faction claims support from 20 MPs in the Lok Sabha. According to sources, 19 dissident MPs, including senior leaders Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar and Shatabdi Roy, submitted their names to the Lok Sabha Speaker's office on May 18. The list of MPs includes Bapi Halder, Dr. Sharmila Sarkar, Prasun Banerjee, Jagdish Burman Basunia, Asit Kumar Mal, Arup Chakraborty, Rachna Banerjee, Sayani Ghosh, Khalidur Rahman, Abu Tahir Khan, Yusuf Pathan, Mithali Bag, Mala Roy, Kalipada Soren, Deepak Adhikari, Jun Maliya, and Partha Bhomik.

Rebel TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar has stated that a group of 20 MPs has formally requested separate seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha, indicating a rift within the party's parliamentary faction.

Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha MP Harshvardhan Shringla remarked that the TMC is disintegrating internally. He noted, "It is natural for this party to fall apart... It is a state party, and when it loses control of the state, people begin to leave. Additionally, irregularities, misconduct, and misgovernance have been hallmarks of the TMC's identity."