Mamata will be CM till 2036, then Abhishek: Kunal Ghosh
BJP leader Samik Bhattacharya said, "Kunal Ghosh said nothing new. In a party like TMC, Abhishek Banerjee would be the next supremo. Now, Kunal first tell us whether TMC will remain intact after 2025, then we will talk about whether TMC will be in power till 2036 or not."
Ghosh was speaking during a party meet in Hooghly (Express File Photo) TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh on Sunday said that Mamata Banerjee would continue as the West Bengal Chief Minister till 2036 and then her nephew and party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee would be taking over.
Addressing a party meeting in Hooghly, Kunal Ghosh hit out at the BJP over the different factions within the party. “At the end of the day, there will be only one Trinamool Congress fighting under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee and her lieutenant Abhishek Banerjee. The BJP should first decide whether RSS-BJP will lead the party or the BJP of those leaders who joined it to escape from the CBI and ED.”
Taking a dig at Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, he said, “The BJP has to decide if Suvendu Adhikari’s BJP or Sukanta Majumdar’s BJP or Dilip Ghosh’s BJP will fight against the TMC. Let them decide first. There will be a fight under Abhishek Banerjee and under Mamatadi’s leadership. Mamata Banerjee will be the chief minister till 2036, then Abhishek Banerjee will be the CM.”
Sukanta Majumdar is the state BJP chief, while Dilip Ghosh is BJP’s all India general secretary.
Earlier this month, Kunal Ghosh had stoked a controversy after he spoke out over TMC number two Abhishek Banerjee’s photo not being displayed at a party meeting at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata.
Kunal Ghosh, who is a close associate of Abhishek, emphasised it was not a fight between the “old and the new”. He had said, “Let me make it very clear — there is no fight between the old and the new. It is not about Mamata Banerjee versus Abhishek Banerjee as they are a team. The party needs both of them… However, I feel any major TMC programme can’t be held without Abhishek Banerjee. As he could not attend the meeting due to his health, his photo should have been put on display.”
“The stage was incomplete without the presence of Abhishek Banerjee or his photograph. He has sacrificed a lot for the party and elevated himself to a position where he cannot be ignored anymore. He is essential for the party,” Ghosh had said.
A TMC senior leader said, “Kunal’s aim is not to predict that Mamata Banerjee will continue her regime till 2036. His main aim was to assert that after Mamata Banerjee, Abhishek Banerjee will be the party chief.”
The Opposition, meanwhile, criticised the TMC and said the ruling party “believed in monarchy and not democracy”.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Sujan Chakraborty said, “Those who believe in monarchy, talk like this. They do not believe in democracy. In a monarchy, the son or a close relative of the king always became the next king. However, the people of West Bengal do not believe in monarchy, they believe in democracy.”
BJP leader Samik Bhattacharya said, “Kunal Ghosh said nothing new. In a party like TMC, Abhishek Banerjee would be the next supremo. Now, Kunal first tell us whether TMC will remain intact after 2025, then we will talk about whether TMC will be in power till 2036 or not.”
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