BJP loses MLA count in Bengal Assembly, 2 MPs resign after winning state polls

File pic: Zee News

Kolkata: The BJP`s MLA count in West Bengal came down to 75 from 77 on Wednesday after two of its MPs, who won the Assembly polls and became MLAs, decided to continue as parliamentarians and resigned from the legislative Assembly. The two MPs decided to submit their resignation following the party's decision. 

Jagannath Sarkar was elected as the MLA of Santipur constituency in the West Bengal polls this year, while Nisith Pramanik was elected from the Dinhata constituency. They submitted their resignation to West Bengal Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee.

Cooch Behar MP Nisith Pramanik, who won from Dinhata in the district, and Jagannath Sarkar, BJP MP from Ranaghat who won from Santipur in Nadia district, tendered their resignation to Speaker Biman Banerjee in the state Assembly on Wednesday.

Pramanik told PTI, "We have followed the party`s decision. The party has decided that we should resign from our Assembly seats."  

Speaking on the post-poll violence in the state, the MP from Cooch Behar said, "The people of Cooch Behar have rejected Trinamool Congress, so they (Trinamool) are resorting to violence. There will be a by-election now in which the BJP will win again."

The BJP had fielded four Lok Sabha MPs in the West Bengal Assembly Elections. Apart from Pramanik and Sarkar, the party had fielded Locket Chatterjee and Babul Supriyo while Rajya Sabha member Swapan Dasgupta was the fifth MP nominee. 

Dasgupta had resigned before filing his nomination from the Tarakeswar seat from where he lost the Assembly polls. Both Chatterjee and Supriyo lost too.

Trinamool MP Derek O`Brien was quoted as saying, "BJP had fielded four Lok Sabha MPs and one Rajya Sabha MP in the Bengal elections. Three of them lost the elections and two won. These winning MPs also resigned today. The world`s largest party set a world record of achieving zero in the elections."

"We cannot be part of Lok Sabha and state Assembly at the same time. So the party decided that we need to resign from the post of MLA that`s why we resigned from our assembly seats," Pramanik told ANI.

Meanwhile, West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar will be visiting the areas affected by the post-poll violence in West Bengal on Thursday. Following the declaration of West Bengal Assembly poll results on May 2, incidents of violence have been reported in several parts of the state. 

After Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claimed that the West Bengal Governor`s visit to the violence-affected Cooch Behar district violates norms, Jagdeep Dhankhar asked her to uphold constitutional commitments.

In a letter to the Chief Minister, the Governor wrote, "We both, being constitutional functionaries, are subject to the constitution. I am sure you will at least concede supremacy of the constitution, that by the oath you are ordained to follow. Revisit your stance and commit to the constitution that by the oath you are obligated to uphold and follow. This is time to address issues being faced by people in deep distress."

(With Agency Inputs)