New Delhi: Trinamool Congress MLA Wilson Champramary and several other party members, including the president of a local body from Dakshin Dinjapur, joined the BJP on Monday as the saffron party continued to poach the leaders of West Bengal’s ruling party.
The TMC leaders joined the BJP at the latter’s headquarters in the presence of its senior leaders, including Mukul Roy, its West Bengal president Dilip Ghosh and its national general secretary Kailash Vijarvargiya, who is in charge of its state affairs.
Champramary, a three-term MLA, represents Kalchini constituency in the state’s assembly. He said 18 councillors are also joining the BJP along with him. “Many more [MLAs] will join BJP and are in contact with party high command,” Champramary told mediapersons.
Champramary said that under the TMC regime, democracy is being “subverted”. He accused Mamata Banerjee’s party of replicating the “oppressive ways” of the Left Front.
Roy described the TMC leaders joining the BJP as an “earthquake”, saying almost all members, including its chairperson Lipika Roy, of a local body joined the party.
Several TMC MLAs have joined the BJP after the saffron emerged as a strong challenger to the state’s ruling party by winning 18 Lok Sabha seats of the total 42 there.