Will it be Narayan Rane model for ex-Trinamool member Mukul Roy?
, ET Bureau|
Updated: Oct 12, 2017, 02.21 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Mukul Roy’s resignation from the Rajya Sabha and Trinamool Congress has set off speculation on whether he will follow the footsteps of Narayan Rane and revive his Nationalist Trinamool Congress, instead of joining BJP, a party he said he was in touch with and described recently as "not communal".
As part of its expansion plans since Amit Shah took over as party chief, BJP has poached leaders from Congress and regional parties. However, in instances where the leader does not have a clean image, BJP has encouraged the person to float his own party and made the organisation a part of NDA.
Rane, a former Maharashtra CM who quit Congress last month, has for med the Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksh, which is now part of NDA. He is likely to join the Devendra Fadnavis government soon but not BJP, which claims that it is a 'party with a difference’ and would like to keep 'tainted leaders’ at bay.
Political compulsions seem to have led BJP to come out with the idea of regional leader forming a party and joining NDA. The policy has also been adopted in states where the party led by the leader joining NDA is stronger than BJP in the region and does not wish to merge his party with the saffron organisation. Roy is facing charges in both the Saradha chit fund scam and the Narada sting case that have dominated the political discourse in Bengal in the last few years. While CBI had questioned Roy in the Saradha scam, it filed an FIR against him in the Narada sting case where Trinamool MPs were caught on camera while accepting cash.
While Roy appears keen to join BJP, the latter has not yet made its views clear. The answer on whether Roy will join BJP or revive his party appears to lie with BJP. Soon after he resigned from the Rajya Sabha and Trinamool membership, Roy told reporters he has been in touch with BJP leaders like Arun Jaitley and party general secretary in-charge of Bengal, Kailash Vijayvargiya. However, he was quick to add he has friends in various parties, including Congress. On whether he would join a party or revive his Nationalist Trinamool Congress, he said he has not taken any decision yet.
BJP has increased its vote base in Bengal in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and the 2016 assembly polls.
However, BJP won only 2 LS seats (Darjeeling, with help of ally GJM, and Asansol) and the NDA got six assembly seats. BJP is desperately looking for a face in Bengal but Roy’s image may be a handicap.
As part of its expansion plans since Amit Shah took over as party chief, BJP has poached leaders from Congress and regional parties. However, in instances where the leader does not have a clean image, BJP has encouraged the person to float his own party and made the organisation a part of NDA.
Rane, a former Maharashtra CM who quit Congress last month, has for med the Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksh, which is now part of NDA. He is likely to join the Devendra Fadnavis government soon but not BJP, which claims that it is a 'party with a difference’ and would like to keep 'tainted leaders’ at bay.
Political compulsions seem to have led BJP to come out with the idea of regional leader forming a party and joining NDA. The policy has also been adopted in states where the party led by the leader joining NDA is stronger than BJP in the region and does not wish to merge his party with the saffron organisation. Roy is facing charges in both the Saradha chit fund scam and the Narada sting case that have dominated the political discourse in Bengal in the last few years. While CBI had questioned Roy in the Saradha scam, it filed an FIR against him in the Narada sting case where Trinamool MPs were caught on camera while accepting cash.
While Roy appears keen to join BJP, the latter has not yet made its views clear. The answer on whether Roy will join BJP or revive his party appears to lie with BJP. Soon after he resigned from the Rajya Sabha and Trinamool membership, Roy told reporters he has been in touch with BJP leaders like Arun Jaitley and party general secretary in-charge of Bengal, Kailash Vijayvargiya. However, he was quick to add he has friends in various parties, including Congress. On whether he would join a party or revive his Nationalist Trinamool Congress, he said he has not taken any decision yet.
BJP has increased its vote base in Bengal in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and the 2016 assembly polls.
However, BJP won only 2 LS seats (Darjeeling, with help of ally GJM, and Asansol) and the NDA got six assembly seats. BJP is desperately looking for a face in Bengal but Roy’s image may be a handicap.
