Kalyani/Siliguri (WB) | In a politically telling image likely to deepen chatter about the churn within the TMC after its assembly poll defeat, senior party MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, along with six other MLAs, on Tuesday attended West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's administrative review meeting at Kalyani.
The optics stretched beyond Kalyani. While a visibly happy Ghosh Dastidar -- who recently quit her organisational post after publicly airing disappointment over her treatment in the TMC -- shared space with six party MLAs at the BJP government's platform, a similar picture unfolded in Siliguri, where five TMC legislators attended a state government meeting chaired by North Bengal Development Minister Nisith Pramanik.
The twin visuals, emerging from two corners of the state within hours of one another, added another layer to the political conversation around West Bengal's evolving post-poll landscape.
Apart from Ghosh Dastidar, the Barasat MP, those attending the meeting included TMC MLAs Anisur Rahaman Biswas of Deganga, Bina Mondal of Swarupnagar, Mohammad Abdul Matin of Haroa and three more legislators from the Basirhat subdivision of North 24 Parganas district.
Held at the APJ Abdul Kalam Auditorium in Kalyani, the meeting brought together officials and elected representatives from North 24 Parganas, Nadia and Hooghly districts.
For political observers, however, Ghosh Dastidar's presence carried political significance beyond its stated administrative purpose.
Only two days ago, she had resigned as the TMC's Barasat organisational district president. Earlier, after being removed as the parliamentary party chief whip and replaced by Kalyan Banerjee, she had posted on social media: "Association since 1976, journey began in 1984. Today I have been rewarded for four decades of loyalty."
The post had triggered speculation over simmering discontent within the party, making her appearance at Adhikari's meeting instantly politically loaded.
Ghosh Dastidar, however, sought to downplay the buzz.
"Administration belongs to everyone," she said briefly.
The attending TMC legislators, too, maintained they were there solely for developmental concerns.
"I have come for the development of my constituency. A total of six of our MLAs have joined the meeting," said Bina Mondal.
"The state government invited us, so I came as an MLA," Abdul Matin said.
Anisur Rahaman Biswas said his constituency contained several backward areas and required government cooperation for overall development.
A similar picture unfolded at Uttarkanya, the north Bengal arm of the state secretariat, in Siliguri where opposition MLAs attended a government administrative meeting chaired by Pramanik ahead of the monsoon season.
The meeting, convened with senior irrigation department engineers and other top officials, saw the participation of several TMC legislators from north Bengal, including Sabina Yasmin, Golam Rabbani, Biplab Mitra, Kanaialal Agarwal and Prasun Mukhopadhyay.
The TMC MLAs praised the initiative, describing it as a constructive exercise. Leaders such as Golam Rabbani and Biplab Mitra said they had attended the meeting on their own initiative and wanted to work for the people.
They termed the discussions fruitful but clarified that their participation should not be interpreted as any plan to switch sides.
Addressing reporters later, Adhikari projected the Kalyani meeting as an indication of departure from West Bengal's past political culture.
"When we were in the opposition, we were not invited to administrative meetings. We decided lawmakers would be invited. The Barasat MP responded positively. Many opposition MLAs from Basirhat also joined here. We even gave one of them an opportunity to speak," he said.
"We want people to receive the benefits of the double-engine government. Political exercises should happen only during election time; throughout the year we will work with constructive ideas," he added.
Interestingly, the development also found support from within the TMC.
Party MLA Ritabrata Banerjee, who had recently criticised a section of the party leadership, welcomed the participation of TMC MPs and MLAs and termed it a healthy democratic practice.
"It's unfortunate that this practice was not followed in the last 15 years. We welcome today's development," he said.
Reacting to TMC MLAs participating in administrative meetings convened by the state government, party leader Kunal Ghosh struck a more cautious note.
"We are not in favour of boycotting administrative meetings called by the state government. But when our party workers are being assaulted and rendered homeless in post-poll violence, we need to think twice before attending such meetings. Our party is also discussing whether we should continue participating in these meetings or not," he said.
During the previous TMC regime, BJP leaders had often alleged that opposition legislators were excluded from such meetings. Soon after assuming office, Adhikari had announced that opposition MPs and MLAs too would be invited.
Tuesday's developments appeared to be more than routine administrative exercises. In West Bengal's fiercely polarised politics, the participation of TMC legislators at government platforms in both Kalyani and Siliguri carried a message of its own.
If not political realignment, the optics certainly reflected shifting equations in the state's post-poll landscape -- where visuals often arrive before announcements.
Kolkata | Six West Bengal MLAs, including TMC senior Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, attended a review meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, sparking defection rumors.Senior BJP leader Saumitra Khan on Tuesday claimed that around 20 TMC MPs were in touch with the saffron camp and were ready to switch sides if the party leadership gave its approval, a charge swiftly dismissed by the TMC as "bogus".
The claim assumes significance amid continuing political chatter over undercurrents within the TMC following its electoral setback in West Bengal and recent public signs of discontent by some leaders.
"Twenty TMC MPs are in touch with us. If the party leadership wants, they are ready to switch sides. If the BJP wants the entire TMC will wind up in the next few days," Khan, a three-term Lok Sabha MP, told reporters, without naming any MP.
The TMC currently has 29 MPs in the Lok Sabha out of 42 seats in West Bengal, whereas the BJP has 12 and the Congress has one.
Under the anti-defection law, at least two-thirds of the members of a parliamentary party need to move together to avoid disqualification. In TMC's case, with 29 MPs in the Lok Sabha, the number works out to around 19 or 20.
Political observers said the emphasis on numbers indicated that any such exercise, if it materialised, would likely aim at a bloc shift rather than isolated defections.
Rejecting Khan's claims, senior TMC MP Sougata Roy termed the reports as "baseless".
"It is absolutely bogus, which the BJP and Soumitra Khan are feeding to reporters. Nothing of this will happen," Roy said.
Ahead of the 2021 assembly elections, several prominent TMC leaders had switched to the BJP, only to return after the Mamata Banerjee-led party retained power. But political observers say the equations this time appear different, with the BJP now in office in Bengal after ending the TMC's 15-year rule — a development that many believe could alter political calculations and trigger fresh realignments.
The speculation also comes at a time when signs of unease within the TMC have become increasingly visible, with several legislators, MPs and leaders publicly expressing discontent in recent weeks, adding fresh momentum to discussions around shifting equations and the evolving internal dynamics within the party.