In a major political development in West Bengal, TMC MLAs have submitted a letter of support to the Legislative Assembly Speaker with 58 signatures proposing the name of expelled leader Ritabrata Bandyopadhyay as the LoP.
West Bengal Assembly Speaker Rathindra Bose has reportedly accepted the letter and a decision is likely to be taken by 4 pm today.
However, the rebel group MLAs have recognised Mamata Banerjee as the leader of the party. Names of Seuli Saha and Javed Ahmed Khan have been proposed as the deputy leaders.
The development comes shortly after Mamata Banerjee faction leader Kalyan Banerjee posted his letter to Speaker Bose on X, informing him about the key appointments with regards to the Legislative Assembly.
According to Kalyan Banerjee, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay has been appointed as the Leader of Opposition, with Ashima Patra and Nayana Bandopadhyay as his two deputies.
Firhad Hakim has been made the TMC’s Chief Whip in the Bengal Assembly.
The TMC leader requested the Speaker to recognise these appointments on the basis of the precedent or practice of the Legislative Assembly.
Reminding him of the past precedent, Banerjee noted that in 2001, the TMC recommended the appointment of Lt. Pankaj Banerjee as Leader of Opposition which was accepted by the then Speaker.
“Similarly in 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021 the same practice and procedure was followed. In 2021, the Bharatiya Janata Party recommended the name of Sri Suvendu Adhikari, as Leader of Opposition, which was accepted by the then Hon’ble Speaker,” he said.
He further claimed that Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay has effectively been recognised as Leader of Opposition who led him to the Speaker’s Chair after his election.
“During the Welcome Speech, being the Hon’ble Speaker, you recognised Sri Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, to address the Welcome Speech, as the Leader of Opposition of AITC. Effectively you have already recognised Sri Chattopadhyay as Leader of Opposition at the Floor of the House,” he said.
After the Assembly polls debacle, the Mamata Banerjee-led party is staring at a split as the rebel MLAs led by Ritabrata Bandyopadhyay refused to accept Sobhandeb as the LoP.
The rebel MLAs also skipped a key party meeting called by Banerjee on Sunday.
According to reports, the TMC could meet the same fate as Shiv Sena in Maharashtra. After Eknath Shinde’s rebellion, the party split into two factions with Shinde camp retaining the party’s name and symbol.
Sources said that Ritabrata is also making similar attempts and with the support of 58 of the 80 TMC MLAs, he could effectively break the party into two.