Kolkata: The political turmoil within the Trinamool Congress (TMC) intensified on Tuesday as two party MPs, June Maliah and Deepak Adhikari (Dev), attended an administrative meeting chaired by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari in Purba Medinipur district.
The development comes amid an escalating split within the TMC, which has now spread from the West Bengal Assembly to Parliament. A day earlier, a group of 20 Lok Sabha MPs led by senior leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar reportedly wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla expressing support for the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as a separate bloc.
Medinipur MP June Maliah and Ghatal MP Dev, both considered part of the dissident faction within the party, were present at the meeting held in Kolaghat. They were joined by Keshpur MLA Siuli Saha, one of the 58 rebel legislators aligned with the camp led by Ritabrata Banerjee.
Speaking to reporters before entering the meeting venue, Saha said elected representatives have a responsibility to work for public welfare regardless of political differences.
“Our duty is to work for the people. That is why I have come to attend the Chief Minister’s meeting,” she said.
The presence of opposition representatives at the meeting drew attention, with BJP MLA Ashok Dinda describing it as evidence of a changing political culture in the state. He said previous TMC administrations had not invited opposition MPs and MLAs to such administrative meetings, while the current government had requested participation from all elected representatives irrespective of party affiliation.
Officials said the meeting is expected to focus primarily on flood preparedness ahead of the monsoon season. Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur and Howrah districts frequently face flooding during heavy rains, causing significant damage to infrastructure, agriculture and local communities.
The latest developments signal a deepening crisis within the TMC, with divisions now visible both in the state legislature and in Parliament. The attendance of rebel MPs and MLAs at a government meeting led by the BJP-backed administration is likely to fuel further speculation about the future political alignment of the dissident faction.
