Bengal Congress leader Koustav Bagchi resigns, says party has lost character

Kolkata: Koustav Bagchi, a lawyer and one of the spokespersons of the West Bengal Congress, resigned from the party on Wednesday, citing his party’s alliance with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) as part of the seat-sharing arrangement among Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) coalition partners for the coming Lok Sabha polls.
Bagchi has been opposing Congress’s alliance with the ruling party since last year. In his letter, Bagchi claimed that the Congress has lost its character as a political party.
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“Owing to the recent political decisions, it seems that the party has chosen to enter into a self-destructive mode. When the elections are knocking at the door, the focus of the Congress party does not seem to be winning the elections but the image branding of a particular individual,” Bagchi, in a letter to Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and the party state president in West Bengal Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, wrote.
The Congress party in Bengal does not seem to acknowledge the existence of the West Bengal Congress Committee but on the contrary, has accepted Trinamool Congress as its outfit in the state of West Bengal, Bagchi wrote.
“Without hesitation, I can firmly say that in the present-day scenario, the Indian National Congress has lost its political character,” the letter read.
To be sure, the TMC has said that it will contest all 42 seats in West Bengal.
Bagchi referred to the recent Sandeshkhali unrest where local TMC leaders have been accused of grabbing farmland and sexually assaulting village women.
“The recent Sandeshkhali incident had shaken the conscience of the entire nation…Our top leadership maintained a stoic silence over the entire issue…,” his letter added.
The letter, a copy of which was seen by HT, was also sent to the state Congress president and national general secretary in charge of Bengal Gulam Ahmed Mir.
Chowdhury did not comment on Bagchi’s resignation till 2pm.
In September last year, Bagchi had written to K C Venugopal, general secretary (organisation), saying Congress should contest alone in Bengal because its workers will never accept an alliance with the party they have been fighting against.