West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on November 23 said that the BJP leadership is planning to expel her party MP Mahua Moitra from the Lok Sabha.
“Their (BJP leadership) plan is to expel Mahua (Moitra). This will only make her more popular. For three months she will say what she was saying inside the Parliament to the media outside. How does it matter? Only those who are stupid can make such an attempt,” Ms. Banerjee said addressing a gathering of Trinamool Congress leaders in Kolkata.
A few weeks ago the Trinamool Congress leadership had appointed Ms. Moitra as the president of the party’s Krishnanagar organisational district. Trinamool general secretary Abhishek Banerjee had also come in support of the Krishnanagar MP, who is embroiled in cash for query controversy, by saying that Ms. Moitra was capable enough of defending herself. Earlier this month, the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee had recommended expulsion of Ms. Moitra.
The Trinamool Congress chairperson also came to the defence of the party’s scam tainted leadership. “I don’t believe that they are thieves,” the Chief Minister said addressing party rank and file at Kolkata’s Netaji Indoor Stadium.
Several leaders of Trinamool Congress including four MLAs and a sitting Minister are behind bars for their alleged involvement in scams which are being probed by central investigating agencies.
“Four of our MLAs are being put in prison. They think by doing this they will reduce our numbers. From the party I am making this announcement that if they arrest four we will arrest eight of their leaders,” Ms. Banerjee said.
Among those arrested from the Trinamool is sitting Minister Jyoti Priya Mallick, former Education Minister Partha Chatterjee and MLAs Manik Bhattacharya and Jiban Krishna Saha. Another key Trinamool leader behind bars is Birbhum district president Anubrata Mondal.
“Partha (Chatterjee), Manik (Bhattacharya) Kesto (Anubrata Mondal) and Balu (Jyoti Mullick Malliack) are all behind bars. This cannot go on,” the Chief Minister said. The Trinamool Congress chairperson while setting the pitch for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls cautioned her party supporters to keep an eye on the situation on the ground.
She also sounded a caution to her political opponents that they will have to suffer the same fate once they are out of power .“What you are doing against Trinamool Congress, Arvind Kejriwal and son of Ashok Gehlot you will suffer the same fate. It will be same officers ( of agencies) who will come after you” the Chief Minister said.
