Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday urged party members to go to the grassroot level and strengthen the ‘Didi’s Suraksha Kawach’ campaign in the state.
“The party has decided not to appoint observers as before but has given certain leaders the responsibility of a few districts,” TMC MP Sudip Bandhopadhyay said after an internal party meeting with party leaders chaired by Mamata at her residence in Kalighat.
There was not much discussion about the upcoming rural polls, Bandhopadhyay said. However, the TMC chief had reportedly rebuked two Murshidabad MPs of her party, Kalilur Rahaman and Abu Taher Khan, for the debacle in the Sagardighi bypoll. Banerjee reportedly accused the two leaders of being in touch with Congress state president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
Mosaraf Hossain becomes party’s minority cell president
Mamata also made Mosaraf Hossain, the MLA from Itahar in North Dinajpur, the party’s minority cell president in place of Haji Nurul Islam.
“We could have given a ticket for the bypoll to deceased TMC Sagardighi MLA Subrata Saha’s son but there were some complaints against him for which the ticket was not given. Minority votes are with us,” Mamata had reportedly said at the meeting.
Leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticised the meeting at Mamata's residence.
“In 2019, ahead of the last Lok Sabha elections, there was a United India rally. I was in TMC then. Then Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the BJP will win with more than 300 seats. Now it will be more than 400 seats,” Adhikari claimed.
