KOLKATA: Suman Kanjilal, BJP MLA from a north Bengal constituency, joined the Trinamool Congress in presence of Abhishek Banerjee, Trinamool Congress’s national general secretary and nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
With Kanjilal’s defection, BJP’s strength in the Assembly has come down to 69 from 77 as five other MLAs had joined the ruling TMC earlier. Two MPs, who contested and won in the 2021 Assembly polls decided to function as the representatives in the lower House.
“As an MLA, I want to work for the common people. I discussed it with the CM and joined the TMC. I wanted to perform more as a BJP MLA under the schemes of the Union government. But I could not because many projects were stalled by the BJP-led Centre,’’ said Kanjilal.