A Ritabrata Bandopadhyay's post on Facebook on Friday has created a flutter inside the CPI(M) and some feel that the young MP has virtually thrown a challenge to the old guards of the party who had pulled him up on Thursday.
Bandopadhyay had gone to Alimuddin Street on Thursday and tendered apology.
After coming out of the state committee office on Thursday evening, Bandopadhyay posted a famous photograph of Joseph Stalin after the victory in World War-II on his wall.
Shortly after this, some followers of Ritabrata posted their comments saying that they feel that a conspiracy has been hatched against him. A follower wrote: "The party needs young Turks like you." Accepting their views, Bandopadhyay replied with double smilies and posted his remarks: "I am on the field and will continue to remain here."
Some party leaders felt that by posting the photograph of Stalin, Bandopadhyay had tried to communicate to his followers that he had won the battle against the old guards who according to them, "had been following an obsolete ideology" while in reality, he had to apologise and this was the "highest punishment in the party's framework."
Ritabrata had hit headlines of newspapers after his photograph showing him wearing an Apple wrist watch and a Mont Blanc pen was uploaded by a party supporter Sumit Talukdar last week. Bandopadhyay received severe criticism on the social media following the post. Reacting sharply, Bandopadhyay called up the HR of the firm in Bangalore where Talukdar works and asked them to take action against him.
But this act was not supported by the party and CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yehchury criticised him and the Politburo had asked the state committee "to censure" him. Party insiders said many senior leaders cannot stand the "arrogance" of Bandopadhyay but they had so long kept quiet because of the support he enjoys from Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.