A tribal couple in Bengal’s Naxalbari joined the Trinamool Congress on Wednesday, a little over a week after Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah had lunch at their house. Raju and Gita Mahali joined the TMC at party’s Naxalbari block office at 10am, prompting angry reactions from the rival party, said an NDTV report.
Shah, when toured the left movement's hotbed last week, enjoyed an all vegetarian meal at Mahalis' house in the village. While the moment was a treat to the reporters, jphoto journalists covering the event, Geeta Mahali was also seen taking selfies with the BJP leader.
In a complete U-turn, the couple has now changed sides in a very dramatic manner. "They belong to the scheduled tribe. They joined our party on their own and they will participate in our party’s programme of carrying development to all sections of society in Bengal," TMC leader Gautam Deb was quoted as saying by the channel. He also had tea in the same house where the BJP boss had his lunch eight days ago.
Although the flip did not go very well with the state BJP as the leaders smell malaise and alleged forced conversion of the duo. "They were kidnapped on Tuesday. Today they were made to join the ruling party," alleged BJP state president Dilip Ghosh, who sat on Shah’s right during lunch in the humble hut on April 25.
The rivalry between the ruling Trinamool and the BJP has soared in recent months, manifesting itself in attacks and incendiary speeches. TMC chief and chief minister Mamata Banerjee has routinely attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party. She has alleged the arrests of her MPs in cases of alleged scams by central agencies are politically motivated.
Hatighisha, the village of Naxalite icon Kanu Sanyal, was adopted by BJP MP SS Ahluwalia as a model village after he was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014.
While campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls, Narendra Modi had said in north Bengal that the BJP would change the face of Naxalbari and alleged the Mamata Banerjee government had done little for it.
