KOLKATA: Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress on Tuesday asked 10 MLAs to vote for party supported Congress candidate Abhishek Manu Singhvi in the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls.
These 10 MLAs are legislators of the Congress, but have actually switched to the ruling TMC.
Confirming the development, a senior Trinamool leader said, “The Congress MLAs who had switched over to the Trinamool Congress has been asked to vote for the TMC supported Congress candidate Singhvi. Officially they are still Congress MLAs as they have not resigned.”
The West Bengal chief minister on Friday had announced its support for Congress Singhvi for fifth seat in the Rajya Sabha polls. The TMC has fielded four candidates – Nadimul Haque, Subhasish Chakraborty, Abir Biswas and Santunu Sen.
Out of the 44 Congress MLAs who had won in 2016 Assembly polls, 11 Congress MLAs had switched over to the TMC and one had passed away. Out of these 11, only Manas Bhunia has resigned from his Sabang seat to become a Rajya Sabha MP. The Congress has also lost Noapara seat to TMC in a bypoll.
Rajya Six candidates, including Singhvi, is in the fray for the election to five Rajya Sabha seats from West Bengal, which is scheduled to be held on March 23.
