TMC 2.0 is born, but will it find a place in the Sun?
It's official now, the Trinamul Congress (TMC) party has split, with the majority of 59 out of 80 MLAs opting out of the party founded and led by Mamata Banerjee.
Trinamul Congress councillor of Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) Shrabani Datta has been relieved from her responsibilities as a member of the mayor-in-council, following a decision taken by the party.
Announcing the decision before the media today, SMC mayor Goutam Deb said: “Shrabani Datta, who was in charge of mid-day meals, child welfare, and women’s welfare as a member of the mayor-in-council, has been relieved from her duties. The party has taken this decision after considering the circumstances.”
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The development comes just two days after a controversy in Ward No. 14, from where Datta was elected on a Trinamul ticket. During the immersion of a Ganesh idol, she was allegedly found in an inebriated state and got into an altercation with a group of locals, who were also reportedly associated with her. Trouble broke out when she attempted to record videos of her opponents, leading to a clash. Her official SMC vehicle, in which she and her daughter were travelling during the immersion procession, was also damaged.
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Yesterday, the councillor had addressed a Press conference, alleging that she and her daughter were attacked. However, today, she was officially informed by the mayor about her removal from the mayor-in-council.
Reacting to the development, Shrabani Datta told reporters: “I was asked not to lodge a police complaint against those involved. Still, I respect the party’s decision. I will now be able to devote more time to my ward as a councillor.”
She further alleged that a section of people involved in land-grabbing, corruption, and drug trade had taken advantage of the incident to target her.
“As a councillor, I will continue to protest against such illegal activities in Ward No. 14,” she said.
Datta also claimed that outsiders were involved in the attack on her and her daughter. “They even threatened that they would ask the party not to give me a ticket in the next corporation elections so that I cannot contest,” she added.
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