Amid speculation of a major split within the Trinamool Congress, the Mamata Banerjee-led party dissolved on Tuesday all its committees and frontal organisations in West Bengal, even as expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee claimed the backing of 60 legislators and sought to position himself as the Leader of the Opposition.
In a statement, the TMC announced that all committees and frontal organisations in the state stand dissolved with immediate effect.
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The party said it would undertake a comprehensive review of its organisational structure, performance and functioning at every level before reconstituting its various bodies.
The move comes amid an escalating internal crisis triggered by the expulsion of Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha for alleged anti-party activities.
A day after their expulsion, the two leaders submitted a letter claiming the support of 60 MLAs in the 80-member TMC legislative party, comfortably crossing the two-thirds threshold required under the anti-defection law.
The rebel camp has proposed Ritabrata Banerjee's name for the post of Leader of the Opposition and insists that Mamata Banerjee should continue to lead the party.
The development is widely being viewed as a challenge to the growing influence of Mamata Banerjee's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, whom Ritabrata has accused of turning the party into a "corporate entity".
The rift deepened after the expelled leaders alleged that signatures of several MLAs had been forged on a resolution appointing the Leader of the Opposition and other key legislative positions.
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Ritabrata has also claimed that the party has been "hijacked" by political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC).
With 60 legislators reportedly backing the rebels, the crisis has placed TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee in a difficult position, potentially forcing her to choose between her nephew and a majority of the party's MLAs.
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