Abhishek heads to Delhi amid buzz over TMC MPs' revolt
New Delhi : TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee travelled to Delhi on Saturday as the party leadership grappled with growing indications that the rebellion which cost it control of its legislature wing in the West Bengal Assembly could spread to Parliament.
The visit, which came a day before Mamata Banerjee's scheduled trip to the national capital for the INDIA bloc meeting, has triggered speculation within party circles amid reports of efforts to engineer a split in the TMC's parliamentary ranks.
According to the original schedule, Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek were expected to travel to Delhi together on Sunday for the opposition INDIA bloc's meeting.
While the official reason for advancing the visit remains unclear, the development has triggered intense political chatter, with leaders and observers viewing it as a possible attempt by the TMC leadership to take stock of the situation before Monday's meeting.
Sources in the TMC said the party supremo herself asked her nephew to leave a day early. Party leaders, however, appeared uncertain about his engagements in Delhi on Sunday.
"I don't know why Abhishek is going to Delhi today. I am not in Delhi or Kolkata now. I haven't heard about any meeting," a TMC MP, who did not wish to be named, said when asked about the visit.
The uncertainty surrounding the trip has coincided with growing reports of efforts by dissident TMC leaders and MPs to replicate in Parliament what has already happened in the assembly.
Only a few days ago, more than two-thirds of TMC MLAs, 58 of the 80 legislators, broke away from the party's official legislature wing and secured recognition as the principal opposition bloc under expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee, dealing one of the biggest organisational setbacks to Mamata Banerjee since she founded the party in 1998.
The rebellion, directed largely against Abhishek's growing influence in the organisation, was informally christened "Operation Crown Prince" by dissident leaders.
Now, political circles in both Kolkata and Delhi are abuzz with talk of another possible operation aimed at triggering a similar rupture within the party's parliamentary ranks.
"I think a similar development is happening in New Delhi in the parliamentary party. This is happening because of the high-handedness of Abhishek Banerjee," Rebel TMC MLA and deputy leader of the party's new legislative wing Sandipan Saha said.
The TMC currently has 28 members in the Lok Sabha after the death of Basirhat MP Haji Nurul Islam.
Under anti-defection provisions, a group would require the support of at least two-thirds of the parliamentary party -- 19 MPs -- to stake claim to a separate formation without attracting disqualification. The party has 13 MPs in the Rajya Sabha.
Sources familiar with the developments claimed efforts were underway to mobilise support among MPs in both Houses of Parliament.
Several party leaders said telephonic outreach to MPs intensified from Friday night and continued through Saturday, adding to speculation that rival camps were engaged in a contest for numbers.
