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After Babri-style mosque storm, ex TMC MLA takes u-turn on resignation: 'People don't want me to resign'
Humayun Kabir said, “People have elected me as their representative. They don't want me to resign.”
Suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Humayun Kabir on Monday withdrew his earlier decision to step down from the West Bengal Assembly.
The decision came days after he sparked a political firestrom in the state and laid the foundation stone of a Babri Masjid-style mosque in Murshidabad on December 6, the 33rd anniversary of the mosque's demolition.
Kabir, who represents Bharatpur in Murshidabad district, had drawn attention for initiating the construction of a mosque modelled after the Babri Masjid. Soon after, he announced he would resign from the Assembly on December 17 and launch a new political outfit five days later, news agency PTI reported.
Also Read | Ex-TMC MLA lays foundation for ‘Babri Masjid-style’ mosque in Murshidabad, BJP reacts
‘People don’t want me to resign’
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Kabir said he had reversed his resignation plan after appeals from constituents. “There is no question of my resignation now. I am not stepping down as MLA,” PTI quoted him as saying.
Kabir added that “People have elected me as their representative. They don't want me to resign. Respecting their wishes, I have withdrawn my resignation decision.”
He had previously stated that he would submit his resignation after attending a standing committee meeting in Kolkata.
TMC distances itself
Following the controversy, the TMC leadership moved to further distance itself from Kabir after suspending him last week for repeated violations of party discipline.
“We don’t believe in communal politics. Kabir was warned thrice in the past by the party’s disciplinary committee. But now he has again done this. With the consent of the party’s chairperson and the national general secretary, the party is suspending him. He will have no relation with the party,” Kolkata mayor and state minister Firhad Hakim said.
