Tathagata's tweet on TMC turncoats widens rift in saffron party

KOLKATA: Former BJP state president Tathagata Roy's comment on social media alleging neglect of original BJP workers as the saffron party was busy welcoming the Trinamool Congress (TMC) turncoats before the Assembly elections — many of whom had expressed willingness to rejoin TMC — created a furore within the party.

The tweet has widened the differences between Roy and the state leaders on the issue.

Roy had tweeted after two TMC turncoats, Sonali Guha and Sarala Murmu, had expressed their willingness to return to the ruling party.

"What I had said has come true. The original workers, some of whom had worked for more than 20/30 years, had been neglected. Those, who had been welcomed by the party, are returning to Trinamool Congress," Roy tweeted in Bengali.

'Organizer', the RSS mouthpiece in its edition on May 13, has severely criticised the BJP leaders for accepting TMC leaders without testing their strength and pointed out that this was one of the causes leading to BJP's dismal performance in the 2021 Assembly elections.

Reacting sharply to Roy's tweet, Joy Prakash Mazumdar, one of the vice-presidents of the state unit, said: "His tweet has exposed his frustration. Some Trinamool leaders had joined us and now they have expressed their willingness to go back to TMC. This will not affect the party's prospects in Bengal. Roy instead of expressing his views through tweets should have spoken to the state leadership."