Cooch Behar: On the heels of Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s warning from the meeting in the Alipurduar district on Saturday, the party brought down the axe on 40 leaders. Within 3days of Banerjee’s warning regarding party members filing nominations as Independents, going against the party, 40 leaders have been suspended for six years. This suspension was announced during a press conference on Tuesday.
Avijit De Bhowmik, the TMC district president of Cooch Behar, explained the rationale behind the suspensions, saying, “Despite Abhishek Banerjee and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s earlier instructions for party members who did not receive party tickets to work for the party, many individuals have disregarded these instructions. They have either filed nominations as independent candidates or openly campaigned for independent candidates. Despite repeated warnings, they did not heed the party’s directions, leading to their suspension for six years as directed by the state leadership.” Bhowmik also added: “Some individuals believe that after winning as independent candidates, they will be able to join the Trinamool Congress. However, they will not be able to return to the TMC fold.”