TMC crisis live: TMC MP Prakash Shik Barak resigns as Rajya Sabha member, third walkout this week

TMC Crisis Live: Mamata Banerjee’s TMC is in the middle of a political storm marked by multiple resignations, growing rebel camps and fresh speculation about a merger with the Congress.

Here’s a look at the key developments

Rebels demand quota of MLAs as main opposition bloc: The first major sign of internal division has emerged in the West Bengal Assembly, where Speaker Rathendra Nath Bose last week recognized 58 rebel TMC MLAs, led by Ritabrata Banerjee, as the main opposition bloc.

Parallel rebellion among representatives: Political turmoil is no longer limited to the House of Representatives. A separate faction also emerged among the TMC representatives. MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, who resigned from all her party posts last week, said she has the support of nearly 20 MPs and the group is ready to support the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

Several prominent names appear in the rebel camp: The splinter group is not limited to lesser-known lawmakers. The rebel camp includes many prominent leaders. Jadavpur MP Sayuni Ghosh and Kolkata MP Dakshin Malla Roy joined the dissident legislators on Wednesday. Other MPs said to be part of the camp include Abu Tahir, Asit Mal, Arup Chakraborty, Kalipada Soren, Jagadish Basonia, Prasun Banerjee, Sharmila Sarkar, Satabdi Roy, Yusuf Pathan, John Mallya, Khalilur Rehman, Babi Halder, Rachana Banerjee, Mitali Bag, Dev Adhikari and Partha Bhowmik.

Sushmita Dev resigns: Vice President and Chairman of Rajya Sabha C P Radhakrishnan has accepted the resignation of Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev with effect from June 10.

Earlier, a senior TMC leader, Sukhendu Sekhar Rai, resigned from both the Rajya Sabha and the party’s core membership, criticizing the party’s performance in the recently concluded West Bengal Assembly elections and calling the ruling a result of “15 years of chaotic rule” under the Mamata Banerjee-led government.

Congressional merger speculation: The internal dispute has also raised speculation about a possible merger between the TMC and the Congress, especially after Mamata Banerjee’s meeting with Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on Monday.

However, mixed signals have emerged. While TMC Secretary General Abhishek Banerjee met Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday to “explore possibilities of deepening ties”, the Congress denied reports of any merger. People familiar with the matter told HT that there is no proposal under consideration to merge the two parties.

Mayor resignation and arrest: Firhad Hakim and Krishna Chakraborty resigned from their posts as mayors of Kolkata and Bidhannagar last week. On Monday, Al-Hakim, considered a prominent face of the minority group in the TMC, appeared to have joined the rebel group.

Meanwhile, TMC leader Jehangir Khan has been arrested near the Indo-Nepal border in connection with an extortion case, according to police. The arrest came after he was allegedly evading law enforcement agencies for several days amid multiple criminal investigations.