Bengal: TMC booth president quits post after Abhishek Banerjee's diktat

A Trinamool Congress block president of Belpahari in Jhargram district has quit his post in the wake of the recent diktat by party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee that those occupying positions cannot take up the job of a contractor.

Abhijit Dutta told reporters on Saturday that he had quit the post on Thursday and sent a letter to the district leadership to this effect.

"It is not possible to run the family without the job of contractor. I will remain a loyal soldier, a grassroot party worker. But as directed by our leader Abhishek Banerjee to all TMC post holders who are contractors, I am hereby quitting the post of block president," he added.

At a recent public meeting at Haldia in Purba Medinipur, Banerjee had said TMC leaders occupying any post in the party should not run their contractor business.

Banerjee had apparently said so in the wake of allegations by opposition BJP and CPI-M that TMC leaders were amassing money from development projects in rural and urban areas either as contractors or in collusion with contractors.

BJP district president Debashis Kundu said "This is an eye wash. Abhijit will run the show despite not being the president of the block in future. TMC and illegal gratification from projects have become synonymous."

TMC state spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said Banerjee believes that a party functionary should not be involved in contract business. "We believe in transparency and Dutta's decision proves that. BJP should instead hold the mirror to itself.