On Saturday, Former Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Asansol Babul Supriyo announced his decision to quit politics and also resign as a Lok Sabha MP on social media.
The singer-turned-politician made the surprising announcement in a detailed Facebook post in Bengali titled “Alvida” (goodbye), in which he added “resigning from my MP-ship too (obviously)”.
Supriyo however clarified that he is not joining any other party, adding that he has always been a “one team player”.
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Explanation of his decision
Babul Supriyo said he is quitting politics because he needs time for himself. He said he joined politics to do social work but it is no longer necessary to be in politics to help people.
Babul Supriyo wrote, “I am leaving only after I have answers to all questions that I had in my heart. One can perform social work even without staying in politics. I need some time for myself.”
Disheartened with Cabinet Reshuffle
Babul Supriyo was part of the Union Council of Ministers under Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the past seven years but he was upset at being dropped in the recent Cabinet reshuffle on July 7.
The MP wrote, “If someone asks that whether leaving the politics is somehow connected to losing ministry. Yes, then it is true to some extent… Also had differences with the state leadership since the assembly poll campaign.”
Supriyo’s journey with politics
Mr. Supriyo contested the West Bengal Assembly Election earlier this year from the Tollygunj Assembly seat in south Kolkata and lost to Trinamool Congress leader and Minister Aroop Biswas by a margin of about 50,000 votes.
The MP compared the situation in 2014 and 2019 and said that in 2014, he was the only BJP MP from West Bengal. The BJP had two Lok Sabha MPs from the State in 2014 and the number rose to 18 in 2019.
Differences between Babul Supriyo and state BJP president Dilip Ghosh
Mr. Ghosh had objected to the matter that Mr. Supriyo had gone on social media announcing that he has been asked to step down as a Minister.
The State BJP president said that he has not received any written resignation from the MP and would not react to ” posts on social media”.
Reaction of other ministers on the matter
While certain TMC leaders like MP Saugata Roy said that Mr. Supriyo was upset for being dropped as a Minister party spokesperson, Kunal Ghosh described the developments concerning Mr. Supriyo as “drama by resigning on Facebook” and ” desperate attempt to attract attention”.
