‘Those who criticised Mamata Banerjee, were awarded’: TMC MP amid feud with Mahua as Abhishek Banerjee heads party in Parliament
The TMC chief’s comments came as a feud between MPs Kalyan Banerjee and Mahua Moitra erupted again, months after they were involved in an altercation on the Election Commission office premises in Delhi.
4 min read
TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appointed her nephew and second-in-command Abhishek Banerjee the leader of the TMC parliamentary party Monday, even as she said, without naming anyone, that two to three MPs were “bringing the party into disrepute” and “no individual is bigger than the organisation”. The TMC chief’s comments came as a feud between MPs Kalyan Banerjee and Mahua Moitra erupted again, months after they were involved in an altercation on the Election Commission office premises in Delhi.
Abhishek replaces veteran MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who has been unwell, as the TMC’s parliamentary party leader. Sources said while the CM praised the performance of the Rajya Sabha MPs, she said there were some “loose ends” in the Lok Sabha and insinuated that Kalyan had failed to properly coordinate in the absence of Bandyopadhyay and Saugata Roy, another veteran MP. “Sudip da said he was doing better and if Didi wanted, he would go to Delhi on Tuesday. But, Didi told him, ‘No need, Abhishek will take charge as the Lok Sabha leader and choose the party’s speakers on different issues.’ She told Sudip da he should rest,” said an MP.
Shortly after the meeting, Kalyan announced his resignation as the Chief Whip, but Abhishek asked him to reconsider the decision, according to an insider. The Serampore MP later told a Bangla news channel, “Abhishek Banerjee spoke to me for 10 minutes. He advised me not to step down and that he would discuss the matter on August 7 … What can I do if most of the MPs remain absent regularly? Does Mamata Banerjee know how the work in Parliament is going on? I did the work I was assigned, but I am not a scholar from Oxford or Cambridge and do not wear expensive sarees. Those who criticise Mamata Banerjee are being rewarded.”
Kalyan also took to X to hit out at Mahua, the Krishnanagar MP, following her recent comments about him in an India Today podcast. “You don’t wrestle with a pig. Because the pig likes it and you get dirty. There are deeply misogynistic, sexually frustrated, depraved men in India and they have their representation in Parliament across all parties,” Mahua said when asked about him.
Kalyan said the comments were “unfortunate” and “reflect a deep disregard for basic norms of civil discourse”. “Labelling a male colleague as ‘sexually frustrated’ isn’t boldness, it’s outright abuse,” he wrote on X. He said “flinging gutter insults” would mask “her (Mahua’s) failures or distract from serious questions about her record”, adding, “Those who rely on abuse instead of answers are not champions of democracy — they are its embarrassment, and the people of this country can see through that act.”
He told the news channel that instead of taking action against Mahua, the party was “targeting” him.
In April, the two had clashed after a TMC delegation went to the EC office to submit a memorandum on the duplication of electoral ID numbers. At the time, TMC insiders said the spat took place after Mahua found her name missing from the list of parliamentarians to have signed the memorandum. She alleged Kalyan had abused her and urged the security officials to arrest him.
Mamata Banerjee took to X to announce Abhishek’s appointment. “Given that our Lok Sabha leader, Sudip Banerjee, is … undergoing medical treatment, the MPs have unanimously decided to entrust Abhishek Banerjee with the responsibility of leading the party in the Lok Sabha… until Sudip da returns to good health. We pray for Sudip da’s swift recovery and look forward to his continued guidance…”
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