National Vice President of the Bharatiya Janata Party National (BJP) Mukul Roy and his son Subhranshu returned to the Trinamool Congress (TMC) fold in West Bengal on June 11.
The father-son duo met the TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister at 3 pm at TMC Headquarters in Kolkata. After the meeting, CM Mamata Banerjee, Roy, Subhranshu and Abhishek Banerjee, CM's nephew, shared stage and addressed media to announce the formal joining.
"I have joined TMC today. In the present circumstances, no one will stay in Bharatiya Janata Party," Roy said after the joining.
CM Mamata Banerjee welcomed Roy and said that he will play an important role in the party.
"Even in the bitter election, Mukul never said anything against me," the CM said. "There are some traitors though who will not be welcomed back," she said adding that more people will be returning to the TMC fold.
Roy's move comes at a time when several turncoat politicians, who switched from the TMC to BJP ahead of West Bengal Assembly polls, have expressed regret over their decision to quit the Mamata Banerjee-led party.
Read: Didi, forgive me: Ex-TMC MLA Sonali Guha who joined BJP issues public apology to Banerjee
Banerjee's TMC stormed to power for the third consecutive term, winning 213 of the 292 seats that went to the polls. The BJP bagged 77 seats in the high-stakes state election.
Mukul Roy won the Krishnanagar North seat in the assembly polls but his son Subhranshu, also a former TMC MLA, lost from Bijpur seat.
Roy, once the close aide of Mamata Banerjee, resigned from the TMC in September 2017 and was suspended for six years for anti-party activities. He joined the BJP in November that year. In September 2020, Roy was made national vice-president of the BJP. His son, Subhranshu joined the BJP in May 2019.
Also read: Opinion | In Bengal, it is all about BJP’s loss and BJP’s shame
Roy is also an accused in the Narada sting operation case being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). On a question about Narada Scam, the CM said the case has been going for seven years.
Speculation about Roy's disenchantment started when his son Subhranshu wrote on Facebook that self-criticism was “more necessary than criticising a government elected by people." The message was said to be targeted at West Bengal BJP.
Also, Abhishek Banerjee recently visited Roy at a Kolkata hospital where his wife is admitted . The next day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally had a conversation with Mukul Roy on phone.
Last month, amid speculation of his return to TMC, Roy clarified that he was very much with the saffron party and will remain so.
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