Former TMC Leaders Sukhendu Ray, Sushmita Dev, Prakash Baraik Join BJP, File Rajya Sabha Nominations

Kolkata: Former Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, Sushmita Dev and Prakash Chik Baraik on Monday had submitted their nominations for Rajya Sabha polls in presence of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and other ministers.

These three former Rajya Sabha members vacated their seats for which election is necessary and last week these three leaders joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and became the candidates of the Upper House soon after joining.

Talking to the media, Sushmita Dev said, “The Congress which initially did is no longer the same. I had joined TMC just seeing Mamata Banerjee. After May 4 new incidents of corruption surfaced for which I had to leave.”

Without taking any name, Dev also questioned why someone would not go for a voice sample test.

Notably, TMC national secretary Abhishek Banerjee has been asked to give his voice sample over his ‘DJ’ comment.

BJP state president and Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya once again had said that the party will ‘not’ accept anyone from TMC.

However, state panchayat minister Dilip Ghosh stated, “Where in the party's Constitution it is mentioned that someone from TMC will not be accepted? Our present Chief Minister was also once in TMC.”