The biggest shock on Wednesday was Sushmita Dev’s exit from the TMC and her resignation from the Rajya Sabha. Although she did not officially join the BJP, the first person she met after resigning was Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. In an interview with HT, she said the loss of Bengal made her realize that the TMC has no future in Assam. Edited excerpts:
Why did you leave the TMC?
As you can see, it’s very simple. Take Assam and West Bengal for example. As you know, my policy is primarily in Assam, while I had the responsibility of working for the organization in Tripura. So my future in politics, if there is one, has to be in Assam. Forget delegation. You win some, you lose some, and this happens in a democracy.
But I think what happened after May 4 gave me every reason to believe that I may not have a future there and maybe giving up the Rajya Sabha seat and party membership would be a wise decision.
Can you provide some insight into what’s happening at TMC?
There is complete confusion within the party. You saw what happened in the state. I have seen what people say will happen in Lok Sabha. In these circumstances, I don’t think Assam stands out anywhere.
Is there a problem with Abhishek Banerjee’s leadership? What are your views?
As you can see, my interaction and engagement with Abhishek Banerjee was limited to Assam. I am not deeply immersed in Bengali politics, how things are in Bengal, or what the internal dynamics are. If you notice, I haven’t even campaigned in Bengal. I went for a day with Mamata Didi when she was doing a padayatra (walking campaign). Aside from that, I don’t know it intimately enough to tell you what triggered who or who made the mistake. My involvement with Abhishek was very restricted. It was Assam-focused, very sporadic, very sporadic.
But what about Mamata Banerjee? Don’t you think TMC has a future anymore?
What’s happening in Bengal, why it’s happening, what exactly upset people about Abhishek Banerjee, what Mamata Banerjee should have or could have dealt with – I’m really not privy to that because I’m not involved in Bengali politics.
TMC has no plan for Assam, was this the main problem for you?
Everyone is upset with me. But I actually brought the party to a better position in Assam. I won the Mandya seat against all odds, even without a party president. We don’t even have a party president in Assam. Abhishek Banerjee has given me the responsibility of running the elections. Mamata Banerjee gave me the responsibility. I leave them better off in Assam.
What is your opinion on people who say that BJP is threatening people with issues and forcing them to leave TMC? Were you threatened too?
No, there is no doubt about that. Why would I be threatened? No one threatened me. I boarded from TMC around 10.15 or 10.30 and sent it via WhatsApp. Then, at 10:45, I went to the Vice President and tendered my resignation from the Rajya Sabha seat. Then I went in broad daylight to the Prime Minister’s residence saying that I wanted to work in Assam. I couldn’t go to people because I had nothing to communicate to them. I can’t just play politics in the air. So I went and said please guide me. Where is the threat? What will they even threaten me with? I don’t have any cases.
Is it true that they asked you to wait till 2029 and they will give you a Lok Sabha ticket?
No, I had a very nice discussion for half an hour with CM Sharma. There is no better person to discuss politics in Assam than him, given his state has 102 MLAs. I think it’s a historical mandate. I’ve worked with him before, so I feel very comfortable talking to him. I can’t give you details about that, but we’ll see how things develop.
