Mukul Roy removed as TMC gen secy, a day after replaced as party RS leader

Kolkata, February 28

Trinamool Congress on Saturday removed Mukul Roy, a former confidante of Mamata Banerjee, from the key post of party general secretary, a day after he was replaced as the party's leader in the Rajya Sabha.

In the midst of speculation of his rift with the TMC supremo, Roy, a founder member of the party who has been under CBI scanner in the Saradha chit fund scam, did not figure in the new 21-member working committee set up at today's working committee meeting.

The removal of Roy, who was till recently considered to be the number two in party organisation as the party's all-powerful all-India general secretary came during a fresh organisational shake-up, the second in the past fortnight.

Announcing the names of party office-bearers, TMC secretary general and state Education Minister Partha Chatterjee said Mamata Banerjee would continue as chairperson of the party and Subrata Bakshi, party's Lok Sabha member from South Kolkata, would be the sole general secretary of the party.

Roy skipped today's meeting presided over by Mamata Banerjee.

Now in Delhi, Roy had told reporters there yesterday that he would not be able to attend today's working committee meeting due to the union budget and some personal work.

Trinmool Congress's official website today said Derek O'Brien, who was functioning as the chief whip of TMC parliamentary party in the Rajya Sabha, has been appointed in Roy's place as leader of the party in the upper House.

"Trinamool appointments in Parliament: Derek O'Brien - Leader of the Party in Rajya Sabha. Sukhendu Sekhar Roy - Chief Whip" the website said.

Chatterjee announced that Sultan Ahmed, the party's Lok Sabha member, would be the new national vice president of the party along with Dinesh Trivedi, a former Railway Minister.

Trivedi was elevated to the post of TMC vice-president when Mamata Banerjee had effected organisational reshuffle on February 14 last.

Chatterjee said that Derek O'Brien, state Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim, party MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar and the party's youth leader and Lok Sabha member Subhendu Adhikary have been made joint general secretaries.

Party MLA Tomonash Ghosh would act as the treasurer, he said.

In what was termed as the first move to clip the wings of Mukul Roy on February 14, Banerjee had appointed party state unit chief Subrata Bakshi as additional national general secretary. Roy was till then the party's only national general secretary.

Party insiders said Roy's letter stating his inability to attend today's meeting was read out by Subrata Bakshi at the meeting.

The insiders quoted Mamata Banerjee as saying that of late Roy was not attending party meetings and programmes.

He seemingly fell out of favour with the chief minister ever since his questioning by CBI in the Saradha chit fund scam in which the role of several party leaders was being investigated.

After his questioning on January 30, Roy had said he would cooperate fully with CBI, virtually contradicting Mamata Banerjee's stand that the investigation was political vendetta by ruling BJP at the Centre.

Roy went against the party line once again on Thursday by praising the railway budget which was criticised by the party supremo.

He had also met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley at his Parliament office on February 26.

Yesterday, Roy had another veiled attack on Mamata when he regretted his earlier decision of removing Subhhendu Adhikari as state Trinamool Youth Congress.

"Adhikari...should have been promoted in the party for his organizational capabilities," Roy had said in New Delhi.

Party MP and Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee had replaced Adhikari, the Tamluk MP as state Trinamool Youth Congress chief.

On February 14, Roy was shunted out in the party with the appointment of an additional general secretary and the setting up of a special group of the National Secretariat comprising O'Brien and Lok Sabha MPs Kalyan Banerjee and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar. — PTI