Cong heading for split in Tripura

His induction in the TC was announced in Calcutta yesterday by its chairperson Mamata Banerjee, who asked her party ally, Bharatiya Janata Party, to leave the Tripura West seat for Majumder in the October 3 Lok Sabha poll.

The BJP had already fielded its senior leader Brajesh Chakraborty from Tripura West.

Talking to PTI, Majumder today alleged that the AICC was maintaining a clandestine relation8217; with the Communist Party of India Marxist at the national level which quot;finished the Congressquot; in Tripura. quot;Only Banerjee has the courage to fight the misrule of CPI M in the country.quot;

He claimed that many heavyweights of the State Congress were behind him and would join the TC shortly.

Howver, TPCC president Gopal Roy said he had not received any resignation letter from Majumder.

Majumder, however, said he resigned from the Congress before joining the TC. quot;I do not find any alternative in the Congress to fight the CPIM,quot; Majumder said, adding he was quot;fed up with the nasty politics of the Congress.quot;

The TC State and disrict units would be announced here shortly, Majunder, a former Rajya Sabha member, said.

Meanwhile, the AICC Central Election Committee has selected Piyush Kanti Biswas for the Tripura West seat but is yet to announce its nominee for the Tripura East seat reserved.

The AICC had expelled a senior leader and general secretary of the TPCC Ratan Lal Nath, MLA, from the party a month ago. Nath had written to party president Sonia Gandhi supporting the issue raised by Sharad Pawar, P A Sangma and Tariq Anwar that being a foreigner8217;, she should not be projected as the party8217;s prime ministerial candidate.

However, Nath had not joined either the Nationalist Congress Party or any other party.