10 of 20 rebel TMC MPs skip Kolkata meeting to discuss disqualification notice by LS Speaker

Half of the rebel MPs skipped a Kolkata meeting as the group faced a deadline to respond to notices over their alignment with the NCPI.

A meeting of 20 rebel TMC MPs who have aligned themselves with the NCPI on Thursday saw half of the group stay away, even as those present discussed their next legal and political moves in the face of a disqualification petition pending before Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

The two-week deadline set by Birla for them to respond to notices seeking their disqualification under the anti-defection law ended on Thursday. (ANI) (Representative Image)

The attendees sought to downplay the absence of 10 MPs, stating that several were abroad, some had family commitments, and others had meetings elsewhere.

The meeting, convened by senior parliamentarian Sudip Bandyopadhyay at a hotel here, also had a festive touch, with a spread of chicken and mutton dishes, pulao, and desserts arranged for the MPs ahead of Durga Puja.

But the conspicuous absence of 10 MPs added a political edge to what was otherwise projected as a pre-Puja get-together.

Apart from Bandyopadhyay, those present included Abu Taher, Khalilur Rahman, Sharmila Sarkar, Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia, Satabdi Roy, Prasun Banerjee, Bapi Halder, Rachana Banerjee and Arup Chakrabarty.

Asked about the absence of half the group, Chakrabarty, the Bankura MP, said, "Someone has gone to America, someone's son is unwell, someone has another meeting."

He added that the absent MPs had been contacted over the phone.

Sharmila Sarkar also rejected suggestions of any rift within the group, saying, "There is no question of any misunderstanding with those who could not come."

Satabdi Roy was even more dismissive of speculation over the attendance.

"Look, we are not keeping track of who is coming or who is going, as it holds no importance," she said.

Roy added that the group already knew that the 10 MPs would not be attending because some were away and others had scheduled engagements, including Disha meetings.

Rachana Banerjee described the gathering as a pre-Puja reunion rather than a formal political meeting.

"We just met today because Puja is coming up, and it was very important to have a get-together," she said, pointing out that the MPs normally meet in Parliament where they are all together, while in their constituencies after returning to Bengal, they become occupied with their respective work.

Yet, behind the festive lunch and claims of routine bonhomie, the meeting came at a politically sensitive juncture for the rebel MPs.

The two-week deadline set by Birla for them to respond to notices seeking their disqualification under the anti-defection law ended on Thursday.

The MPs have now decided to seek another two weeks to submit their replies, Ghosh Dastidar had earlier told PTI.

The notices seek to know why the MPs left the TMC and aligned themselves with the NCPI and why the anti-defection provisions should not be invoked against them.

The latest request would be the fourth extension sought by the 20 MPs in the prolonged legal and political battle over their status.

The MPs had initially sought four weeks to respond in September, but the Speaker's office granted them two weeks instead. The latest request is for another two weeks.

The disqualification petition against the 20 MPs was filed before the Speaker, with separate complaints made against each of them. The Mamata Banerjee camp of the TMC has also approached the Supreme Court in the matter.

The Speaker's office subsequently issued notices to the MPs seeking their response following the Supreme Court proceedings.

The rebellion in the TMC has turned into an unusual institutional battle, with the rival camp asserting its claim not merely over the MPs but also over the political identity of the party.

Senior TMC leader and MP Kalyan Banerjee has already claimed that the 20 rebel parliamentarians would face disqualification within a year and that bypolls would then be held in all 20 constituencies.

For now, however, the rebels appear determined to stretch the proceedings.

If the Speaker accepts their latest request, the MPs will get another two weeks to formulate their responses and explain their decision to break ranks with the TMC and align with the NCPI.

Thursday's Kolkata meeting thus combined the mundane with the politically consequential: a pre-Puja gathering over grand dishes, alongside deliberations over a battle that could determine the parliamentary future of 20 MPs and potentially trigger bypolls across Bengal.