TMC Leaders Wash Dirty Linen In Public: Factionalism In Mamata's Party?
In what is being seen as an embarrassment for the TMC, a heated exchange between TMC MPs Kalyan Banerjee, Kirti Azad and another MP has become the center of a political storm. What we know is that tensions flared amongst at least three TMC MPs outside the Election Commission of India (ECI) office on April 4. The disagreement quickly escalated to shouting and even calls for BSF intervention. Now this is not just about loose cannons in any party but how these leaders conduct themselves in public. The fight spiralled to social media and that chats amongst the MPs have been leaked now. BJP's West Bengal in charge Amit Malviya who released these videos on social media has snarkily remarked that is what legends are made of, while the TMC has admitted that this shouldn't have happened. Now this comes at a politically critical time. A three term Chief minister Mamata Banerjee who is credited for taking on not just the left but also the BJP, faces elections next year, at a time when her own nephew Abhishek Banerjee seems to be playing a much less dominant role in party affairs. The heat of RG Kar rape and murder episode is still on, and TMC recently also faced a setback when the Supreme Court upheld the cancellation of over 25k school job appointments made. The questions we ask today - Is the TMC today a divided house? A year before polls, political fissures within the TMC are playing out in the open now?
