Last week, Mr Trivedi was seen at an event in Gujarat with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's older brother
Dinesh Trivedi, a top leader of the Trinamool Congress, appears set to switch to the BJP. Reports that four ministers in the Bengal government may accompany him have commissioned a crisis for Chief Minister and Trinamool head Mamata Banerjee.
Mr Trivedi, who was a founding member of the Trinamool 16 years ago, told NDTV, "I won't predict anything but I want to change the DNA of Indian politics - and for that, I will do whatever it takes."
Mr Trivedi, 64, represents Barrackpore near Kolkata in Parliament. He was Union Railways Minister in the coalition government headed by Dr Manmohan Singh when he was sacked by his party president Mamata Banerjee for increasing train fares.
Asked to compare Ms Banerjee with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr Trivedi told NDTV, "It is not fair to compare (them). Mamata, individually, is a very nice person. But we have to shed egos in politics. In politics, we should have dignity, self-respect but not arrogance or ego."
Mr Trivedi says he been friends with the PM since 1990. "Democracy is not being subservient. I can always tell Modi if he goes wrong." The sting lay in the tail. "With Mamata, it is difficult," he said.
Last week, Mr Trivedi was seen at an event in Gujarat with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's older brother, Somabhai Modi; in an interview to a local daily, he described the premier as a leader with exceptional vision.
Manjul Krishna Thakur, a minister in the Mamata Banerjee government, joined the BJP last Friday. According to sources, many other Trinamool leaders are in negotiations for a similar move. BJP President Amit Shah has declared his intention to make major gains in Bengal in municipal elections later this year. State elections will be held next year. At a rally in Kolkata in November, the BJP chief had famously declared, "I am Amit Shah and I have come here to uproot the Trinamool from Bengal.