In West Bengal, BJP sealed a landslide victory with 207 seats in the 294-member assembly, ending the Trinamool Congress’s uninterrupted 15-year rule. Rudranil Ghosh of the BJP won the Shibpur assembly seat. Amid the assembly poll verdict, there were rumours that actor Prosenjit Chatterjee called Rudranil to congratulate him on his victory. The actor has dispelled these rumours in a new post on his Facebook account, saying that he did not call anyone.
What Prosenjit said
He wrote, “I have been acting with great respect for many years and I want to continue to do so in the future. I have one humble request to all of you – please don’t put any political colour on me.”
He went on to add, “I did not call anyone; rather my younger brother called me. As a big brother, it is my duty to bless someone, and I have only done that. It has nothing to do with politics.”
Prosenjit, who was recently honoured with the Padma Shri, has not been involved in politics or contested elections in any region. He has worked with Rudranil on several Bengali films throughout his career.
More details about West Bengal elections
Meanwhile, TMC’s Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday refused to resign as chief minister of West Bengal, opening up a constitutional grey zone and a political confrontation in the state. The TMC tally fell to 80 seats from its earlier 215, with Banerjee herself losing her seat.
Banerjee said about 100 seats were “forcibly taken” from her party, which also had to contend with a “biased” Election Commission. She did not back her accusation with evidence. “I will not resign, I did not lose… officially, through the Election Commission, they (the BJP) can defeat us, but morally, we won the election,” she told a news briefing.
“My target is very clear. I will strengthen the INDIA team, just like a small person. I don’t have any chair now, so I am a commoner. So, you cannot tell me that I am using your chair. I am now a free bird. I gave my entire life in service to the people, even in these 15 years I have not withdrawn one paisa of pension. I am not taking one paisa of salary also. But now, I am a free bird. So, I have to do some work, which I will manage to do,” she added.
The BJP, meanwhile, dismissed her claims outright, accusing her of undermining democratic institutions and refusing to accept the people’s verdict. “Her comments have no acceptance. She is only making herself a laughingstock. We guess she is making such incredulous comments to hog the limelight for a few more days,” party spokesperson Debojit Sarkar said.