‘Golden moment I was waiting for’: Former Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi joins BJP after resigning from TMC

The political turmoil within the Trinamool Congress (TMC) party continues, ahead of the West Bengal State Legislative elections. In a major development, former TMC MP Dinesh Trivedi joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday. The development comes three weeks after he had resigned as Rajaya Sabha MP, citing lack of freedom to speak about the ongoing violence in his own State.

The former TMC heavyweight leader joined the saffron party in the presence of BJP National President JP Nadda, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. While speaking about his decision, Trivedi emphasised, “This was the golden moment I had been waiting for.”

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He further added, “I’ll be active in the election process, irrespective of whether I contest or not. Bengal has rejected TMC. They want progress, not corruption or violence. They’re ready for real change. Politics isn’t ‘khela’, it’s serious. She (CM) forgot her ideals while playing.” Following his inclusion in the BJP, JP Nadda said that Dinesh Trivedi was a ‘right man in the wrong party.’

Former Railway Minister Trivedi is the latest entrant to the BJP from the ruling Trinamool Congress. The Election Commission of India on Friday announced an eight-phased Assembly poll for West Bengal beginning March 27. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

Dinesh Trivedi resigns from Rajya Sabha

On February 12, TMC senior leader Dinesh Trivedi announced his resignation from the Rajya Sabha on the floor of the house. While doing so, he said that he was feeling suffocated, strangled under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership. “We cannot speak anything here”, said the parliamentarian before resigning from the Upper House.

He said, “Grateful to my party that they’ve sent me here. I’m feeling suffocated that we’re not able to do anything over violence in the state. My soul tells me that if you can’t do anything sitting here, then you must resign. I will continue to work for people of WB.” In his resignation speech in the Rajya Sabha, Trivedi hailed PM Narendra Modi’s leadership in dealing with the Covid pandemic. He said that it was under the PM’s leadership that 130 crore Indians could bravely fight the COVID-19 pandemic.