Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national vice president Mukul Roy and his son Subhranshu Roy rejoined Trinamool Congress (TMC) in Kolkata on Friday in the presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
This comes a month after the TMC secured a landslide victory in the West Bengal assembly elections. The event was preceded by a meeting between him and the top brass of TMC, including Mamata and TMC national secretary Abhishek Banerjee at the Trinamool Congress Bhavan in Kolkata.
Mr. Roy described Ms. Banerjee “as a leader of the entire country”. He stated, “In the present circumstances, no one can stay in the BJP in Bengal.”
Ms. Banerjee in turn described Mr. Roy as an “old family member” and added that “old is always gold”. “Our party is already a strong party. Mukul is an old family member. He was pressured by agencies. I think this decision will provide him mental relief. His health was deteriorating also.”
The veteran Mr. Roy played a crucial role in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls when the BJP won 18 out of the 42 seats, but was reportedly upset for lack of attention given to him.