TMC asks MP Sisir Adhikari why he voted in Vice Presidential polls after party abstained

Earlier, TMC had issued a notice to their party MP Sisir Adhikari asking him to not participate in the Vice Presidential elections this year.

Pic Credit: File Photo

New Delhi: The Trinamool Congress party had decided to abstain from the vice presidential elections this year. However, TMC MP Sisir Adhikari reportedly participated in the VP elections which were held on Saturday (Aug 6). Party MP and leader of the House in the Lok Sabha Sudip Bandyopadhyay has written letter to Adhikari about the same, asking him to explain why he took part against the party's decision.

"Please refer to my letter dated 4 August 2022, wherein you were informed that our parliamentary party members both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha would abstain from voting in the Vice-Presidential election on Saturday, 6 August 2022. We have noted that you cast your vote in the Vice-Presidential Elections held today," said the letter as quoted by PTI.

Reacting to the same, TMC's West Bengal spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that if someone flouts the party's guideline, it shows his or her proximity to BJP.

For the unversed, Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, had decided to abstain from voting in the vice presidential polls as they claimed that the joint Opposition candidate was chosen without consulting the party.

Jagdeep Dhankhar won the vice presidential elections against Margaret Alva with a big margin of votes. While 371 votes are required to become Vice President, the former West Bengal Governor Dhankhar got 528 votes - 70 per cent of the total votes. In terms of votes, he has exceeded outgoing Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.

(With PTI inputs)