TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray resigns:Veteran leader cites people’s verdict and backs new BJP government after assembly election defeat

In a major political development, veteran Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray on Monday announced his resignation from both the party and the Upper House of Parliament, citing the people’s verdict in the recently concluded West Bengal Assembly elections. Veteran TMC MP resigns In a statement, Ray said the electorate had expressed a complete lack of confidence in the Trinamool Congress after its 15 years in power. He alleged that voters had rejected what they viewed as rampant corruption, crimes against women, and failures in key sectors such as education, healthcare, industry, employment and law and order. “The people of West Bengal have, for the first time in the state’s history, given the Bharatiya Janata Party a massive mandate,” Ray said in his resignation statement. People rejected Trinamool, claims Ray He further noted that the newly elected BJP government had already begun implementing its electoral promises and initiating programmes aimed at the development and reconstruction of the state. He said Respecting this historic verdict of the people with humility, I hereby resign from the primary membership of the Trinamool Congress as well as from my position as a Member of the Rajya Sabha, Political ripples expected across Bengal Sukhendu Sekhar Ray has been one of the most prominent parliamentary faces of the Trinamool Congress and his resignation is expected to trigger fresh political debate in West Bengal, coming at a time when the party is facing a series of organisational and political challenges following its defeat in the Assembly elections.