KOLKATA: Sharp discontent in the BJP’s Bengal chapter surfaced as BJP MP Saumitra Khan Wednesday quit as the state president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM).
Soon after the move, Khan accused party MLA and Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari of misleading the saffron camp’s high command. He also alleged that Adhikari had brought 128 TMC leaders under the umbrella of the BJP who were not acceptable among the common people for their unclean image.
Former TMC minister-turned-BJP candidate in the Assembly elections Rajib Banerjee too lashed out at Adhikari saying the Leader of Opposition should be more focused on the hike in petrol and diesel prices than attacking CM Mamata Banerjee.
"The way the BJP is functioning in Bengal, it will not be good for the future. Everything is happening here according to what a leader is saying. He is visiting Delhi again and again and misleading the party’s central leadership. It is as if he sacrificed a lot for the party. There are many in the party who, too, sacrificed a lot. The state president (Dilip Ghosh) understands only half of the words," Khan, without dropping Adhikari’s name, said shortly after announcing her decision to step down from the portfolio on a social medial platform.
Adhikari made several trips to Delhi in the recent past and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP high-command, including national president JP Nadda and Union Home minister Amit Shah.
Castigating the saffron camp’s decision to induct TMCs turncoats ahead of the Assembly elections, Khan said, "After a TMC leader joined the BJP, 128 others followed her. The thieves in a group came a month before the election. I am disappointed with the way the rights are being exercised."
The haughty parliamentarian did not forget to claim to be "clean". "I have not even taken hundred rupees from the party or anyone. I have not joined the party with any self-interest. I live in a one-storey house. I will fight as an ordinary BJP worker for the rest of my life," he said.
Reacting to Khan’s allegation, Adhikari said, "He (Khan) is my colleague in the party. I will not comment on it. I would like you not to take the issue seriously."