Trinamool hints at BJP pressure in Srinjoy Bose resignation

Kolkata, Feb 5 (IANS) Pointing fingers at the BJP, the Trinamool Congress Thursday claimed that Srinjoy Bose - who quit from both the Trinamool as also the Rajya Sabha - was under "tremendous pressure" from the "party in power at the Centre" and wondered whether there was a link between the push and his subsequent resignation from the Trinamool.

"It is Srinjoy Bose's personal choice. It is his prerogative. It is his democratic right. We have been saying for some time now that he has been put under tremendous pressure by the party in power at the Centre. He was released on bail yesterday (Wednesday)," Trinamool spokesperson Derek O'Brien said.

"He (Bose) resigned today. Did this pressure lead to some coordination? We are happy that he got freedom yesterday," O'Brien, Trinamool chief whip in the Rajya Sabha, said in a statement.

Bose quit as member of parliament as also from the party Thursday, a day after getting bail in a case related to the Saradha chit fund scam. Politics is "not my cup of tea", he said.

Bose, who spent 75 days in police and judicial custody after his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the chit fund scam, announced his decision to quit as an MP and from the primary membership of Trinamool in a media release here.

He also said pressure from his family shaped his decision.

O'Brien said the vacancy would be filled soon.

"The Rajya Sabha seat which becomes vacant will be filled by the All India Trinamool Congress. We will soon announce the name of a party member who will then become a member of the Rajya Sabha. We wish Srinjoy well in all that he does. We wish him a speedy recovery. Our warm wishes to him and his entire family," he said.