Trinamool Congress' Bengal chief Chandrima Bhattacharya quits, meets rebel faction
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Trinamool Congress' West Bengal president Chandrima Bhattacharya resigned from all party posts on Saturday, dealing another blow to Mamata Banerjee as the party grapples with a widening internal revolt.
Bhattacharya, who was appointed state president after the Assembly election defeat, submitted her resignation in a letter stating that she was stepping down from all organisational positions.
"I hereby tender my resignation from the post of State President of All India Trinamool Congress... I also hereby resign from all other posts which I hold at present," she wrote.
She also withdrew herself as the party's authorised signatory for bank accounts and as its authorised representative before the Election Commission.
Soon after submitting her resignation, Bhattacharya met the rebel faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee at the West Bengal Assembly. Ritabrata Banerjee has been appointed Leader of the Opposition by the rebel camp after securing the support of a majority of the party's MLAs, despite Mamata Banerjee nominating Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay for the post.
Reacting to her resignation, Trinamool leader Kunal Ghosh questioned why Bhattacharya had not resigned earlier when she held key positions in Mamata Banerjee's government.
BJP West Bengal president Samik Bhattacharya said the latest resignation reflected the Trinamool Congress' declining political relevance.
The resignation comes a day after rival factions clashed over control of the party's headquarters, Trinamool Bhavan, in Kolkata. The rebel faction took control of the office, changed the locks, and installed a signboard naming senior MLA Arup Roy as party chairman.
Leaders loyal to Mamata Banerjee later reached the office and filed police complaints over the takeover, prompting heavy deployment of Kolkata Police and Central Reserve Police Force personnel around the premises.