Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 11 (ANI): TMC Lok Sabha MP Pratima Mandal denied reports claiming that she was among the party MPs who allegedly signed a letter extending support to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), challenging the ‘rebel faction’ to publicly produce any document bearing her signature.
Calling the reports “absolutely fake news,” Mondal said she remained committed to the Trinamool Congress and the mandate given to her by the people.
“This is absolutely fake news that is being spread. My constituents might be influenced by this fake news; they might think, ‘Why would Pratima Mondal, whom we elected on the twin flowers symbol, leave?’ I want to say through your medium that I am in Kolkata. Since the 4th, I haven’t even gone to Delhi,” Mondal told ANI.
Questioning the claims made by the dissident group, she asked them to make public the alleged letter purportedly signed by 20 MPs.
“If you claim to have 20 MPs, and this news has been circulating for 2-3 days, why don’t you show that letter with everyone’s signatures in the media? Why don’t you release that picture or paper to show if my name is on it? I’m telling you, don’t spread fake news and don’t mislead the people of my constituency,” she said.
” I myself called my MPs asking them to sit for a meeting in Kolkata. But they told me to come to Delhi… I did not receive any message of any such action (of rebelling) from their end. Whatever they were telling me, I did not find that appropriate. That is why I did not go to Delhi… I asked the MPs to meet because at that time, many MLAs were rebelling, and I wanted to talk about how to keep the party together,” she added.
Mondal further asserted that she would remain with the Trinamool Congress and continue to represent her constituents. “I am with them, and I stand by the twin flowers symbol they elected me on. I will be with them till 2029, and I respect their mandate,” she added.
The TMC MP also denied being contacted by any group seeking her support for a move towards the NDA. According to Mondal, while some colleagues had asked her to come to Delhi for discussions, no details were provided regarding the purpose of such meetings.
Her remarks come days after rebel TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar claimed that around 20 TMC MPs had written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla expressing support for the NDA.
The claim was rejected by the All India Trinamool Congress, which questioned the existence of any such letter and maintained that the party remained united under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee.
The development comes amid intensifying internal turmoil following the party’s defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, which saw the state elect its first BJP government under Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. (ANI)
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