Kolkata, Nov. 6 -- Magrahat West MLA Samim Ahmed has emailed the Election Commission clarifying that he remains with Mamata Banerjee's faction and requesting it to disregard any affidavit submitted in his name by the Ritabrata Banerjee faction.
Ahmed had joined the Ritabrata faction after the Assembly elections and was among the MLAs who signed in support of Ritabrata's nomination as Leader of the Opposition. However, on Thursday night, he was seen alongside MAITC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. He subsequently emailed the Commission, stating that he had submitted an affidavit in support of Mamata Banerjee.
Abhishek claimed that Ahmed had initially approached Ritabrata seeking help but was asked to fabricate a statement against him instead. He said Ahmed subsequently approached his faction and decided to return to Mamata's camp.
The Sarisha building from where police claimed to have recovered over Rs 1.02 crore on November 4 was earlier used as Ahmed's party office. Abhishek alleged that the cash had been planted there as part of a conspiracy.
The development follows similar shifts by other MLAs. Amdanga MLA Kasem Siddiqui returned to Mamata's faction in August, while Basirhat North MLA Tausifur Rahman and Baruipur East MLA Bibhas Sardar had also switched back earlier.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.