Singer-turned-politician Kabir Suman’s rebellion against the Trinamool Congress leadership has spiced up the political scene in Bengal. The effect of his words can be felt not only in the Trinamool but the CPI(M) as well, which is trying to find ways to use this against Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee.
To stop further embarrassment to the party and prevent any division among anti-Left intellectuals in the state, Mamata has fielded Gyanpith-winning writer and social worker Mahasweta Devi to bring Suman back into the Trinamool fold. After an hour-long meeting with the singer late on Wednesday evening, Mahasweta Devi said, “Everything is all right with him.”
On Wednesday evening, Suman seemed to have resolved his issues with Mamata through talks, but on Thursday, he hardened his stand again. The singer-MP stayed back in Kolkata while his Lok Sabha colleagues went to New Delhi to attend the first day of the winter session of Parliament. “Unless the differences of opinion are settled, I will not accept the MP’s allowance,” Suman said on Thursday.
Now, it remains to be seen whether Mamata would fly back to Kolkata mid-session to console her rebel lieutenant or will Suman soften his stand and throw in his lot with the party once more.
If the Suman issue is causing embarrassment to Trinamool, it is creating confusion within the CPI(M). The party leadership, which goes into an overdrive on any issue that can be used against Mamata , is not sure how to treat this.
So far, only one reaction has come from CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member Shyamal Chakrabarty, who said, “Kabir Suman has realised it is impossible to operate honestly within the Trinamool.” Left Front sources said that there were differences in the party on how the matter should be treated. While one section thinks it is an internal matter of the Trinamool, another wants to use it to divide the anti-Left intellectuals.
