Kolkata, June 2 -- When former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was leading a sit-in protest at Kolkata's Y-Channel on Tuesday, barely a kilometre away at the Assembly, expelled Trinamool Congress MLA Ritabrata Bandyopadhyay claimed that the party had been "hijacked" from its supreme leader.
The remarks came amid intense speculation over a possible split within the Trinamool Congress following the expulsion of Ritabrata, the MLA from Uluberia East, and Entally MLA Sandeepan Saha in connection with the Assembly signature-forgery controversy.
Speaking to reporters outside the Assembly, Ritabrata sought to distinguish between his criticism of the party's current functioning and his regard for Mamata Banerjee.
"Mamata Banerjee is a...