KOLKATA: The ‘Signgate’ row over the alleged forging of Trinamool MLAs’ signatures claimed its first casualties on Monday, immediately after a press conference by Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari, and threw Trinamool into even greater disarray.Trinamool was forced to expel two of its MLAs, Sandipan Saha (Entally) and Ritabrata Banerjee (Uluberia East), after an act of defiance that would have been unthinkable even a month back.CM Adhikari revealed that the two had complained to the assembly speaker about the alleged forgery of Trinamool MLAs’ signatures during the process to elect the assembly opposition leader. This complaint, which went squarely against the Trinamool party line, had earlier led the assembly secretary to lodge an FIR with Hare Street cops and bolstered the police case against the Trinamool leadership.“I have instructed the CID to take whatever possible action (against this) forgery. Those who do not cooperate will face consequences according to the law. No one will be spared,” Adhikari said. “There is no BJP or state role in exposing the case. Two Trinamool MLAs themselves lodged the complaint,” he added, rubbing it in. He also announced a three-member special investigation team headed by an officer of the DIG rank to probe the issue.Eighty MLAs were elected to the assembly on the Trinamool ticket; the party’s strength will drop to 78 when the expulsion process reaches its conclusion.A breakaway faction can beat the anti-defection law if it can rustle up 27 MLAs (roughly a third of Trinamool’s current strength of 80).The developments prompted Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee to appeal to party MLAs “not to decide in haste”. “It was a blunder to take in a person CPM had expelled,” she said, referring to Ritabrata.
Someone had to do it, says Ritabrata; Kunal calls act a ‘massive betrayal’
Trinamool gave him the chance to be an MP and an MLA at the cost of others,” Mamata Banerjee said, referring to a Trinamool MP who wanted an (MLA) ticket for her son. The party, caught unawares by the rapidly unfolding scenario and dissent from almost every flank, “thanked” Adhikari for bringing the issue to the fore.Party spokesperson and Beleghata MLA Kunal Ghosh alleged a larger Ritabrata-led plot to wean away more legislators and referred to “a meeting” Ritabrata had with 20 plus other Trinamool MLAs at a New Town hotel, a claim that the latter denied.CM Adhikari earlier explained that Trinamool national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee wrote a letter to the Bengal assembly speaker on May 9, nominating the assembly opposition leader, the deputy leader and the chief whip. The assembly principal secretary asked the Trinamool on May 18 to submit the minutes of the resolution. Abhishek sent a resolution with 70 MLAs’ signatures, out of which 14 names were written in block letters.“The two Trinamool MLAs complained to the speaker, alleging no resolution was adopted on the selection of the assembly opposition leader on May 6. The complaint alleged that the resolution dated May 6 was fabricated,” Adhikari said. The speaker then directed the assembly principal secretary to lodge an FIR with Hare Street police. The case was later handed over to the CID.The CID has so far done “videography, photography and signature verification” of 13 MLAs, an official said. “Three of them, Baharul Islam, Arup Roy and Subhashish Das, told the CID that the signatures were not theirs,”Adhikari said, adding: “Trinamool, even after losing, has not given up its habit of theft. They are certified veteran thieves. They are deeply corrupt.”Both MLAs who complained were recalcitrant. Saha said he had acted against an illegal act within the party and did not regret his stand: “Abhishek signed and submitted the document, certifying that this was our resolution. But that list contains numerous errors. It even includes signatures of people who are not MLAs.” If the party expelled him for exposing an unethical and irregular act, it showed that the leadership supported unethical conduct, he added. “We had no knowledge that signatures on an attendance register would later be converted into a resolution and submitted to the speaker. This is completely illegal,” Saha said.Ritabrata on Monday said “someone had to do it”. “Sandipan and I jointly discussed and prepared the draft and submitted the letter to the speaker,” he said, adding that all TMC MLAs were forced to declare support for Abhishek for the way he managed the polls, which bothered many MLAs, he added.Ghosh called the two MLAs’ act as “a massive betrayal”. “The workers will judge. The leadership will rebuild the party. Could we not have waited just a little?” he asked.Trinamool MLAs spoke in different voices about the controversial party resolution. Islam (mentioned by CM Adhikari) admitted he had not signed the resolution. “I did not step out of my house on May 6 because of violence. There is no question of signing (it),” he said.But Chowringhee MLA Nayana Bandyopadhyay said there was a party meeting with “officially recorded minutes”. “I wrote my name in block letters and then wrote the name of my constituency. There was no space left on the form to sign after that. There was nothing forged or suspiciousabout it,” she added.
