LEADERS LEAVING THE Trinamool Congress is nothing new. In the early 2000s, several leaders revolted when Mamata Banerjee walked out of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, but she was not worried. She knew that many of them had returned to the Congress, which had a similar ideology, and realised that they would come back to her soon. Several did.
Almost two decades after, Banerjee now faces another wave of defections. And, unlike last time, she is worried. The leaders who have recently left are opting for an ideology that is far removed from hers.
It started when, in 2017, she lost her confidant Mukul Roy to the BJP. He was an astute political strategist and organiser who had broken the Congress’s spine by luring away most of its state leadership.
Since then, Banerjee lost many other party men to the BJP, including loyalist Sovan Chatterjee, and strong youth leaders such as Saumitra Khan and Anupam Hazra. However, Roy’s departure hurt her the most.
Today, when another strongman, Suvendu Adhikari, has left to join the BJP, she seems more worried than hurt. Adhikari, the second son of senior Trinamool leader and Banerjee loyalist Sisir Adhikari, is known to be a mass leader and a competent organiser. He was the man behind two of the strongest campaigns of Banerjee’s political career—the Nandigram land movement and the Lalgarh tribal movement. Both were movements against the left government, and played no small part in helping Banerjee win Bengal.
この記事は THE WEEK の January 03, 2021 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は THE WEEK の January 03, 2021 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
There Is A Wind Blowing Against The BJP, And It Will Only Pick Up Speed
Interview - Akhilesh Yadav, Former Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh
Between hospital and home
Transitional care centres can add a lot to India's health care system
EFFORT VS EFFECT
The government's attempts to ensure quality drugs is evident, but how well new policies can be monitored on the ground remains to be seen
A way to let go of fear
Accepting the use of adult diapers is a journey with various stages-denial, concealment, rejection and reluctance
Mandeeps & a miracle
Two strangers, one deadly disease and an act of kindness. How Mandeep Mann saved Mandeep Singh, an acute leukaemia patient, by donating his stem cells
The A, B, C of cosmetic surgery
Between eight to 10 lakh cosmetic surgeries happen in India every year. Who is an ideal candidate, and what are the risks and results you can expect?
Vaccines and meningitis
In sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east, and encompassing the northern part of Nigeria, there exists a region known as the African Meningitis Belt (AMB).
Celebrating diversity and inclusivity
As Indians battle it out in our nation's 18th general election, it is again time for voters to reflect on the \"Idea of India\"-or rather, on two duelling ideas of India that are now before us and between which the nation must choose at the ballot box.
Defendant: an Hermès handbag
When Hermès was hit with a class-action lawsuit last month for \"antitrust\" activities, it didn't see it coming. Most of the luxury world has all eyes on this suit, filed by two interested consumers who claim they were denied a purchase, and whether it would go to trial.
A legacy, bound
Amal Allana's biography of her father, Ebrahim Alkazi, is as much personal as it is historical