Conveying a strong message to estranged Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy, the party on Tuesday said it was keeping a close watch on him as he was picking up issues one after another to embarrass the party and the government.
“We are keeping an eye on the entire matter,” TMC Secretary General and Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, who is one of the members of the TMC disciplinary committee, said.
Mr. Chatterjee was replying when his attention was drawn to Mr. Roy’s controversial comments concerning the affairs of the party and the government.
“If a party worker declares war sitting at home, that will not cause damage to the party. People are themselves are privy to the entire episode... they will take a call on this,” Mr. Chatterjee said on the sidelines of a programme at Suri, headquarters of Birbhum district.
Meanwhile, expelled CPI(M) leader and former Minister for land and land revenue in the Left Front government Rezzak Mollah on Tuesday ruled out joining a party, if floated by Mr. Roy.
“There could be at best an understanding or some seat-adjustment. I will not leave my weaver’s nest and go anywhere,” Mr. Mollah said.
Mr. Roy had reportedly telephoned Mr. Mollah, but there were no details available.
Mr. Mollah was quoted by a local TV channel as having told Mr. Roy that he would be able to meet him only after March 15.
Mr. Chatterjee’s observation came a day after Mr. Roy, once a close aide of Mamata Banerjee, launched a fresh tirade on Monday taking a dig at the industrialisation claims by the State government.
“However, we may try to compare West Bengal with other states quoting GDP, industrialisation is not taking place (in Bengal) in the true sense,” Mr. Roy, who was removed from the post of TMC all India general secretary, had said reacting to Ms. Banerjee’s meeting with the PM on Monday.
He said on Saturday last that it would have been better for the party if it did not join hands with the CPI(M) in the Rajya Sabha to vote against the BJP government pertaining to an amendment to the President’s address in the Rajya Sabha recently.
After being questioned by the CBI in the Saradha case on January 30, Mr. Roy had said he would cooperate fully with the CBI to unearth where the Saradha money went, virtually contradicting Ms. Banerjee’s stand that the CBI probe into Saradha was political vendetta by the BJP.
He had said that whether he would remain in the TMC or not “depends on the party”.
He had also obliquely accused the Mamata Banerjee government of shedding “crocodile tears” for the minority community. He did not name Ms. Mamata or her government but the comments made it clear who his target was.
He met the Pirzaada of Furfura Sharif, a mazar in Hooghly district, on Saturday night. Peerzada Toha Siddique is known to be a staunch critic of the Ms. Banerjee on the government’s “failure” to fulfil the promises about the minorities.
