Smartened by electoral setbacks and abandonment, the West Bengal BJP now faces a brand new problem – the anger of leaders from the Matua neighborhood, a significant vote financial institution that has helped the celebration win a number of seats aside from taking part in a key function within the 2021 meeting elections. had helped. To guarantee his success within the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The dissatisfaction of the Matua leaders with the BJP was mirrored on Tuesday when Shantanu Thakur, the Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Leave numerous WhatsApp teams of Bengal BJP, An MP from Bangaon, Thakur is a senior chief of the Matua neighborhood, who heads the All India Matua Mahasangh, a non secular and cultural group of the neighborhood. His transfer got here after a bit of MLAs from the neighborhood left numerous WhatsApp teams of the state BJP.
They are offended with the celebration because the Matua leaders weren’t given any illustration within the lately introduced revised state committee by the celebration. He highlighted that even his neighborhood leaders haven’t received satisfactory illustration within the organizational areas and district committees constituted by the celebration, even in areas with substantial Matua inhabitants.
As Thakur and a number of other BJP MLAs from Matua held a closed-door assembly on Tuesday evening to debate their calls for, the Bengal BJP stated the dispute can be resolved internally, even because the ruling The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has made it clear that its doorways will stay open. Open to talks with “disgruntled” Matua leaders.
“It was the Matua vote that helped the BJP win seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 assembly elections. Many BJP workers killed in political violence belong to this community. The Matuas want their representation in the committees and district leadership of the party they are with. This is not for our individual benefit but for the community. We want the BJP to be strong in Bengal,” Mukut Mani Adhikari, BJP MLA from Ranaghat South constituency, advised The Indian Express. The officer was among the many MLAs who had been near Thakur on Tuesday.
“Our calls for are clear. We need that the place of a Vice President and a Secretary within the State Committee of Bengal BJP be represented by Matua after session with Shantanu Thakur on this matter. We need that the put up of supervisor of Nabadwip zone ought to signify the Matuas. We desire a change within the put up of president of the organizational districts of Nadia Dakshin and Bangaon. Proper illustration of the neighborhood in each the posts is the necessity of the hour. We additionally need the celebration to debate with Thakur earlier than forming a committee of Scheduled Caste Morcha within the state.
“We spoke with BL Santoshji and Amit Malviyaji earlier. Shantanu Thakur has apprised the nationwide leaders about this challenge.
On his half, Thakur advised media individuals, “I’d not wish to touch upon leaving the WhatsApp group proper now. The leaders of the Matua neighborhood weren’t given a spot within the state committee and others. Let the time come, I’ll let you know the explanation for my actions and my future plans.”
On December 25, 5 MLAs – Mukutmoni Adhikari, Subrata Thakur, Ambika Roy, Ashok Kirtaniya and Asim Sarkar – had left a number of WhatsApp teams of the state BJP expressing their displeasure over the dearth of Matua illustration within the state celebration committee. Most of them belong to the Matua neighborhood. Later, BJP National General Secretary (Organisation) BL Santosh and celebration in-charge of Bengal Amit Malviya held a gathering with the disgruntled Matua MLAs.
Newly-appointed Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar, attempting to minimize the controversy, stated, “It is an internal matter of the party. We will talk to him (Shantanu Thakur) and solve any problem he may face. There is a process for all this. One should have directly approached the state leadership.”
Meanwhile, in ready, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool indicated that it is able to maintain talks with the aggrieved BJP leaders from the Matua neighborhood to affix them.
“BJP has always divided people and used them. He has done politics with the Matua community. Now they are throwing out the Matua leaders from the party. Earlier BJP cheated the Matua people by claiming that they will give them citizenship even though they are already citizens of this country. If Matua leaders have any problem then we are ready to talk. Mamata Banerjee will take a call,” stated TMC chief and Bengal Forest Minister, West Jyotipriyo Malik.
A politically influential scheduled caste group, the Matuas belong to the Namasudra neighborhood who got here to India from East Bengal throughout Partition and after the formation of Bangladesh in 1971. The Matua neighborhood, which has a inhabitants of over 1 crore in West Bengal, has a robust presence within the state’s 26 meeting seats, the place they’ll play an essential function in figuring out the result of elections. These are primarily the Bangaon and Barasat parliamentary constituencies in North 24 Parganas and the Krishnanagar and Ranaghat parliamentary constituencies in Nadia district.
After shedding to the Trinamool within the meeting polls, which was adopted by defeat within the latest Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) elections, the Bengal unit of the BJP goes by way of a interval of strife, infighting and defection. A bit of its MLAs left the celebration and moved to TMC. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had received 18 out of 42 seats within the state. The celebration managed to win 77 seats within the meeting elections held early final 12 months, although it misplaced all subsequent meeting bypolls. Her efficiency within the KMC elections was disastrous.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
