North 24 Paraganas: Following rebel MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar's announcement that 20 MPs who were elected from Trinamool Congress (TMC) intend to merge with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), NCPI founder and national organising secretary Shantanu Dey stated he was previously unaware of these internal developments but welcomed the move and expressed openness to discussing further plans.
Speaking to ANI, Dey said that the decision about the merger from NCPI was taken by the party president, adding that he remains committed to the party's growth and expressed a willingness to engage with the new members to support Prime Minister Narendra Modi and work with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
"I got to know about this from social media and the news. I welcome them to hold talks with me. Why won't I be happy if my party grows? I have heard that the decision was taken by the party president. He has not called me about this yet. I want to take the party forward. If my party grows, we will be able to work for the country. We support PM Modi and wish to work with the NDA for the nation...If Kakoli Di speaks to us, then we will certainly go (to Delhi). I am hopeful that we will talk (NCPI & 20 TMC MPs. We will hold a press meet soon," he said.
This comes after the political turmoil within the AITC escalated sharply on Sunday as a significant faction of the party announced a rebellion.
Rebel MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said that 20 Lok Sabha MPs have merged with the NCPI and will now extend their support to the NDA.
Following a meeting with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Ghosh Dastidar stated that the group, which she claims constitutes more than two-thirds of the party's strength, has requested a separate sitting in Parliament.
Speaking with ANI, Dastidar said that the rebel MPs submitted a letter requesting a separate sitting in the Parliament. She said that the MPs will "collaborate" with NDA under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.
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"We, the twenty MPs elected from the AITC, met the Speaker and submitted a letter requesting to sit separately; these twenty MPs constitute more than two-thirds of our total strength. We are merging with the Nationalist Citizens Party. Moving forward, we will work for the nation and collaborate with the NDA under the leadership of the Prime Minister," she said.
