Nobody parachuted down on TMC or used lift to rise within it: Abhishek's jibe at Suvendu

SATGACHIA: In an apparent jibe at disgruntled Trinamool Congress MLA Suvendu Adhikari, Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday said that the TMC is a grassroots party and nobody has been able to parachute down on it or use a lift to rise within it.

Adhikari, who resigned as a minister in the Mamata Banerjee cabinet on Friday, had earlier said that he has risen through the party ranks and has not landed from the top using a parachute or taken the lift to move upward.

Abhishek Banerjee, who is the West Bengal chief minister's nephew and a two-time parliamentarian, said that the TMC and its supremo Mamata Banerjee is like a "mother to her children".

"The mother who has given her children the opportunity to work for the people and rise through its steps is Mamata Banerjee.

"Mamata Banerjee has created the Trinamool Congress, which means the grassroots party. No one has been able to land on top of it with a parachute or use a lift to rise," the Diamond Harbour MP, who is also the TMC youth wing chief, said in an apparent jibe at Adhikari without naming him.

Addressing a public rally here in his constituency, Banerjee asked the audience whether they would let go if anyone "betrays the trust of the mother" for personal gains.

"If anyone sells off his spine to another party for his narrow personal interests, will you allow that?" he asked, adding that one cannot betray the trust of the mother.

"If anyone does so, his decimation is a foregone conclusion," Banerjee said.

Suvendu Adhikari has been distancing himself from the TMC for quite some time though he is still an MLA and holds the party membership.

He was the backbone of the Nandigram anti-land acquisition movement that played a crucial role in Mamata Banerjee romping to power by defeating the Left Front.

Adhikari, who has been holding apolitical public rallies at different places in the southern districts of the state amid speculations over his next move, had on October 31 said, "Neither have I parachuted down, nor have I taken a lift to rise. I have walked up the stairs to reach where I am."

The heavyweight leader, who holds considerable clout in several districts, had reportedly expressed his reservations on issues relating to the running of the TMC during meetings with veteran MP Saugata Roy whom the party top brass had deputed to hold parleys with him for reconciliation.