Heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari joins BJP; 9 MLAs, 1 MP also change sides

Midnapore (WB): West Bengal political heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari along with nine MLAs of different parties and a TMC MP joined the BJP at Home Minister Amit Shah’s rally in Midnapore on Saturday, ending weeks of speculations.

Adhikari resigned from the Trinamool Congress earlier this week, besides giving up his cabinet portfolios in the Mamata Banerjee government. He has also resigned as an MLA but it is yet to be accepted.

Two-time TMC MP from Bardhaman Purba Lok Sabha constituency Sunil Mondal also joined the BJP. He has been vocal about his differences with the party’s leadership over the last few days.

Among the MLAs who switched over to the BJP are five from the TMC.

TMC MLAs Banasri Maity, Silbhdrada Dutta, Biswajit Kundu, Sukra Munda and Saikat Panja took up the saffron flags at the mammoth rally at the College Grounds here.

MLA Dipali Biswas, who had won the Gajole seat in 2016 on a CPI(M) ticket but joined the TMC in 2018, was also inducted into the BJP. She has not resigned as a CPI(M) MLA.

Haldia’s CPI(M) MLA Tapasi Mandal, Tamluk’s CPI MLA Ashok Dinda and Congress MLA from Purulia Sudip Mukherjee also joined the BJP at the rally.

Former TMC MP Dasarth Tirkey also joined the BJP.

Several district-level leaders of the TMC, Left and Congress, including former minister Shyamaprasad Mukherjee, also changed sides and joined the BJP.