Suvendu Adhikari writes to WB speaker, seeks disqualification of two MLAs

In two separate petitions, which also had documents pertaining to the switchover attached with it, West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari sought the disqualification of legislators Biswajit Das and Tanmoy Ghosh at the earliest.

Kolkata:Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Monday wrote to Speaker Biman Banerjee demanding disqualification of two MLAs who recently crossed over to the TMC after having won state elections on BJP tickets.

In two separate petitions, which also had documents pertaining to the switchover attached with it, Adhikari sought the disqualification of legislators Biswajit Das and Tanmoy Ghosh at the earliest.

"Both of them are free to join any party but they have to resign as BJP MLAs. Let's see what measures the speaker takes... We will then decide on our next course of action," Adhikari stated.

The TMC leadership, however, hit back, asking the leader of the opposition to urge his father, Lok Sabha MP Sisir Adhikari, to show the way.

Sisir Adhikari, who won the general election from Kanthi in 2019 on a TMC ticket, joined the BJP ahead of this year's assembly polls

"Suvendu Adhikari should first ask his father Sisir Adhikari to resign as TMC MP as he joined the BJP ahead of the assembly polls. Only then he should lecture others," Tapas Roy, a legislator of the state's ruling party, said.

Since the declaration of assembly poll results on May 2, four BJP MLAs have switched over to the TMC. None of them, however, resigned as MLAs.

Das and Ghosh joined the TMC in August.

Another BJP MLA from Kaliaganj in North Bengal, Soumen Roy, followed suit on September 4.

In June, BJP MLA and party's national vice-president Mukul Roy returned to the TMC, four years after he had quit the Mamata Banerjee-led party to join the saffron camp.

The BJP won 77 of the 292 Assembly seats that were up for polls. The Trinamool Congress won 213 seats, while ISF and GJM bagged one seat each.

Bypolls are due in five seats, and fresh polls will be held in two seats, where elections were countermanded due to death of candidates.

The BJP had earlier filed a similar petition seeking disqualification of Mukul Roy as MLA. PTI