Unhappy over alliance with Left, Tripura Congress leaders resign; likely to join Trinamool

The Congress in Tripura has landed in deep trouble, with two senior party functionaries resigning from their posts in protest against alliance with Left parties in West Bengal Assembly polls. PCC working president Asish Kumar Saha and State Youth Congress chief Sushanta Chowdhury put in their papers on Friday to follow suit of Leader of Opposition Sudip Roy Barman who resigned on Thursday.

The beleaguered leaders have said the unethical and opportunist alliance between Congress and CPI(M)-led Left front in West Bengal gravely embarrassed the party rank and file in Tripura. Mr. Saha, in his resignation letter addressed to party chief Sonia Gandhi, claimed "innumerable lives of Congressmen were taken away by the CPI(M) party while Left cadres raped women for their allegiance towards Congress party."

Mr. Saha, who is also a MLA, declared in same line with Mr. Barman that the alliance beat his conscience to discharge duties as the working president of PCC.

Mr. Chowdhury, in his letter to AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi, alleged the tie up betrayed people of Tripura who gave about 45 per cent vote share to Congress in almost all elections in the State.

Sources said the leaders who raised flag of revolt against the electoral understanding in West Bengal would join Trinamool Congress at an "appropriate time." The resigned leaders have opined they would soon chalk out future course of action to "protect people from continuous oppression of CPI(M) in Tripura."

Congress has ten MLAs while CPI(M) has a huge majority in 60-member Assembly. Only four MLAs — Mr. Barman, Mr. Saha, Diba Chandra Hrangkhawl and Biswabandhu Sen — have openly voiced ire, but they are not quitting from Assembly.

The disgruntled faction requires support of seven MLAs to escape anti-defection law after joining a new party. “Definitely we have a political plan, but don’t want to disclose at this point of time”, Mr. Chowdhury told The Hindu.

Meanwhile, ruling CPI(M) is also facing resentment from rank and file over West Bengal poll alliance. After defections in Ambassa of Dhalai district, a group of cadres led by Khowai district youth wing leader Animesh Gope and 25 workers resigned from the party to lodge protest against ‘unprincipled’ alliance with Congress in West Bengal.