TMC crisis deepens as Sushmita Dev resigns from Rajya Sabha

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) faces a deepening crisis as Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev resigned from the Upper House on Wednesday. Her departure comes just two days after fellow lawmaker Sukhendu Sekhar Ray also quit, further diminishing the party's representation in Parliament.

Dev's resignation, submitted to Rajya Sabha chairman CP Radhakrishnan, stated, "I do hereby resign from the membership of Rajya Sabha, which may please be accepted with immediate effect." Ray and Dev's resignations will necessitate by-elections for the two seats. Given the BJP's significant strength in the assembly, the party is widely expected to win both seats.

These twin resignations exacerbate the internal turmoil within the TMC. The party had previously played a crucial role in opposing the Constitution amendment bill aimed at implementing early delimitation. Dev, the daughter of late Congress stalwart Santosh Mohan Dev, had joined the TMC from the Congress as part of the party's national expansion strategy. She was serving her second term in the Rajya Sabha and had four years remaining.

Adding to the party's woes, former chief whip of TMC in the Lok Sabha, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, has claimed that 20 TMC Members of Parliament have written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. They reportedly requested to be considered as a separate bloc, distinct from the TMC. Dastidar is expected to meet with Birla on Wednesday to discuss the matter.

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I do hereby resign from the membership of Rajya Sabha, which may please be accepted with immediate effect