Another blow to Mamata Banerjee as her aide Firhad Hakim resigns as Kolkata Mayor

In another blow to embattled Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee, her aide Firhad Hakim on Friday announced his resignation as Kolkata Mayor, saying he was unable to work as he used to do earlier.

"I am not able to work the way I used to do earlier. That's why I have resigned. Otherwise, it would have been an insult to the chair I held. My best wishes to those who will take over," Hakim, a four-time TMC MLA from Kolkata Port, said.

The 67-year-old TMC leader urged Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari to fulfill the expectations of the people.

"I had requested Mamata Banerjee a few days back that I wanted to quit and she had approved (my resignation). My request to the new government and the Chief Minister is, please fulfill the expectations of the people," he said.

Hakim, a former state minister and one of the most prominent faces of the TMC, had been serving as the Mayor since November 2018. He was the first Muslim mayor of the city since Independence. On June 3, Hakim sought permission from Mamata Banerjee to step down from his post, sources said, amid growing turmoil within the party following its crushing loss in the West Bengal Assembly polls. The party won just 80 of 294 seats, compared to 207 by the BJP. The saffron party also won the Falta Assembly re-poll.

Recently, Hakim found himself at the centre of political speculation after attending Suvendu Adhikari's administrative review meeting at Nabanna earlier this week. His presence, along with several senior TMC leaders considered close to Mamata Banerjee, fuelled discussions about shifting equations within the party.

Among those who attended the meeting were TMC MLAs Nayana Bandyopadhyay, Ashok Deb and Kunal Ghosh. Their participation came at a time when the party's legislative wing appears headed for an unprecedented split.

The crisis marks the most serious internal revolt in the TMC since its formation by Mamata Banerjee in 1998. The rift deepened after 60 of the party's 80 MLAs broke ranks and projected expelled first-time MLA Ritabrata Banerjee as the leader of their faction. The Assembly Speaker subsequently recognised Ritabrata as the Leader of Opposition, a move that further aggravated tensions within the party.

While asserting that his faction would continue to recognise Mamata Banerjee as the TMC's supreme leader, Ritabrata has made it clear that it does not accept her nephew Abhishek Banerjee, widely regarded as the party's second-in-command, in a leadership role.

The controversy over the Leader of Opposition's post stems from allegations that the signatures of Ritabrata and fellow MLA Sandipan Saha were forged on documents submitted to the Assembly proposing Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay for the position. The proposal ultimately failed to secure recognition, exposing deepening divisions within the party.

Both Ritabrata and Saha were expelled from the party and denied claims that they forged their signatures. On Thursday, the Crime Investigation Department (CID) questioned Hakim at his residence in connection with the signature forgery case.

TMC TO FACE SPLIT IN PARLIAMENT?

Meanwhile, signs of the TMC's internal crisis spreading beyond West Bengal and into Parliament are beginning to emerge. Sources told India Today TV that around 23 MPs were in touch with the rebel faction of MLAs, raising the possibility of a split in the party's parliamentary wing in the coming days.

The speculation was echoed by veteran TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray on Thursday. Speaking to India Today TV, Ray said the rebellion that erupted within the party following its crushing defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls could soon be replicated in the Lok Sabha.

Ray, one of the party's senior-most parliamentarians, remarked that while he remained "physically" with the TMC, he was "mentally out of the party".