Bengal political pitch snaps nuptial knot, BJP's Soumitra part ways with TMC's Sujata
Hyderabad: Marriages are made in heaven, but the twist and turns in Bengal's politics today proved sour for a couple who had been going steady for the past ten years!
Soumitra and Sujata were considered to be a power couple from Bishnupur in West Bengal for the BJP. But, everything went haywire after Sujata Mondal entered the Trinamool Congress party headquarters today flanked by senior leader Sougata Roy and party spokesman Kunal Ghosh. A little later, Sujata was holding the Trinamool Congress flag firmly and beaming at cameras and saying, “BJP is now turning to be the B-team of Trinamool Congress. Why should I be part of a B-team? It is better to be part of the A-team. So I am here.”
That was enough for hubby Soumitra.
Within minutes of wife Sujata donning the TMC cloak, Soumitra Khan, the BJP member of Lok Sabha from Bishnupur and the president of the West Bengal unit BJP Yuva Morcha, said he will soon send Sujata a divorce notice.
“I was so busy in political activities that I never noticed when the goddess Laxmi of my house was robbed from me. They tried to burn down your house. They cut the power supply of your house. Your job was snatched away by Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, but I kept my promise... never created a situation where you had to ask for money or anything. Today you have joined hands with those who had harmed you so much,” tears rolled down the cheeks of Soumitra, while he faced the media at his Salt Lake residence.
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But, by then, wife Sujata was firmly in Trinamool.
“It is my decision (to join TMC) and I have accepted a challenge. I had fought for the BJP without any protection and facing much danger. Those who are today joining the BJP are those against whom I have fought all this time. The corrupt leaders who were with the Trinamool, are now making a beeline for BJP. It is high time that I stay in such a party, which has never recognised my contribution for them,” she said adding, “They (BJP) have six names for the CM's post and 13 are in the pipeline for the deputy CM seat. It was getting increasingly difficult for me to explain to people about the face of BJP in the 2021 elections.”
In fact, it was Sujata who had campaigned for Soumitra in Bishnupur during the 2019 general elections after he was barred by the High Court to enter Bankura, following a complaint of extortion from job aspirants on false promises. Sujata was a key figure during the entire campaign for husband Soumitra, who was first elected to the Lok Sabha on a Trinamool Congress ticket in 2014 from the same Bishnupur constituency. Earlier, Soumitra was elected to the state Assembly in 2011 as a Congress candidate from Katulpur constituency. In 2013, he switched sides to TMC.
BJP insiders today said, the meteoric rise of Sujata and her growing political aspirations could have been the reason behind the saffron higher-ups developing a cold feet for her. Even during Amit Shah's visit to Bankura on November 5, Sujata was a constant feature by the Union Home Minister. Her ambition to bag a ticket in the coming Assembly elections or contest the Lok Sabha bypolls if husband Soumitra contested the 2021 Assembly poll and won, was directly against BJP's campaign against family and dynasty politics. All this could have prompted Sujata to switch sides.
“You have been trapped and you have committed a big mistake,” was all that Soumitra could say as his voice choked.
From Sujata for her Soumitra, “Who can guarantee that Saumitra Khan won’t join me in future?”
It is politics after all.
