In one of her strongest public defences of Abhishek Banerjee since the split in the TMC, Mamata Banerjee said he had become an “excuse” for attacks on the party despite repeated summons issued to him and his family members and praised him for continuing the political battle instead of seeking “relief” through compromise.
“Abhishek Banerjee has been turned into an excuse. His family members were summoned. Had he wanted, he could have got relief. But he did not run away from the battlefield. The way he has continued to fight, all his flaws have been forgiven,” the former chief minister said while addressing party workers during a Facebook live.
Several senior leaders who have deserted Mamata’s camp in recent weeks have accused Abhishek Banerjee of running the party in an authoritarian manner and fostering a culture of intimidation.
Hitting out at the defectors, Mamata Banerjee said, “I apologise before the people on behalf of the traitors. I have not sold my ‘bibek’ (conscience) for political survival.”
She alleged that she and her family had been subjected to sustained political persecution because they had refused to compromise.
“Had I compromised, we would not have faced so much torture. Those who have compromised have many bags and luggage of their own,” she said in an apparent swipe at leaders who have switched allegiance.
Claiming that the BJP was using investigative agencies and police to engineer defections, Mamata Banerjee alleged that many leaders had crossed over out of fear.
“We still have 18 MPs in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. Those Parliamentarians who have joined the ‘setting company’ have done so because they are afraid of the police,” she claimed.
In an apparent reference to the BJP, she said those leaving the TMC were entering the saffron party’s “washing machine”, and the BJP-backed TMC’s rebel camp.
“The person (Madan Mitra) who left today had yesterday told us that he and his family had received summons. We understood then that he might switch camps. Those who have a setting are joining the BJP’s washing machine,” she said.
Without naming any individual, Mamata Banerjee said leaders facing investigations were choosing political convenience over conviction.
Asserting that defections would not weaken her resolve, the former chief minister said she was prepared to rebuild the party from scratch if necessary.
