Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday gave up her Parliament membership. Her resignation letter has already been submitted to the Secretary General of the Lok Sabha by the Trinamool Congress secretary-general Mukul Roy.
The development was confirmed by Mr. Roy who spoke to The Hindu from New Delhi. “I have formally handed over the letter” he said.
For Ms. Banerjee, who has held a parliamentary seat throughout her political career, this resignation became a necessity following the major victory of her party in the Assembly elections, which catapulted her to the Chief Minister's chair on May 20, breaking the 34-year Left rule.
After the winning of the Assembly by-elections last month from the Bhabanipur constituency, it was only a matter of time before she gave up her Kolkata (South) parliament seat. The seat was vacated for her by her party and ministerial colleague Subrata Bakshi.
With her resignation, the strength of her party in the Lok Sabha now stands at 18.
