Revolt in Tripura Congress: 500 members join Trinamool Congress

, Sept 23: The opposition

in

on Sunday suffered a jolt as over 500 activists of the party on Monday joined the newly formed state unit of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), party sources said.

"It is only the tip of the iceberg as large numbers of Congress leaders and activists would join the party as it would be able to launch a stringent struggle against the misrule of CPI-M led Left Front government in the state," TMC chairman Ratan Chakraborty said while welcoming the defected activists of Congress to the party.

Three former ministers of Congress Surajit Dutta, Ratan Chakraborty and Jawhar Saha had joined the TMC following discussion with TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata last month.

"Now we would tour in entire Tripura so that leaders and activists come forward to join TMC which can play the role of an effective opposition in the state," Chakraborty told reporters.

The Congress activists felt the party will not be able to defeat the Left here

Sadar district president Tapan Datta and Pradesh Congress committee (PCC) member Subrata Dey, who were among those who joined TMC today, stated that the Congress high command in Delhi has a clandestine understanding with CPI-M and would not like Left Front be ousted from Tripura anytime.

"The Congress in the state is also faction ridden and lack of inner party discipline and it would not be able to oust the CPI-M government from Tripura. We joined the party because we think that it would be an effective opposition in the state," Datta told reporters.

The Congress suffered a heavy defeat against the Left Front government in the state in February. The Left is in power in Tripura for over two decades now.

PTI