Mamata Banerjee Disowns Brother Amidst Political Turmoil

The audience eventually announced that the entertainment was ended when Bengal's first family of politics publicly laundered linen.

Reminding her sister how meticulously she had raised him, chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday disowned her youngest brother Swapan (Babun) Banerjee for his act of defiance on the choice of a longtime opponent as a candidate for the Lok Sabha election.

Shortly after, Babun pledged his loyalty to his sister, shelved his intentions to run as an Independent against Prasun Banerjee, the Trinamul candidate from Howrah, and mocked rumors that he might join the BJP.

During a Siliguri press conference, Mamata charged Babun with forgetting his early years. "Our father was two and a half years old when he passed away. My salary while I worked at a milk depot was Rs 45. That's how I raised him.

Perhaps I wasn't able to raise him correctly since I got involved in politics at that time. However, I've been able to raise other people well. Mamata continued, "He shouldn't be using our family name any more. After this, don't address him as my brother. You can recognize him as an individual, but kindly refrain from using my name.

Ever since I entered the political arena, I have collaborated with countless individuals. I have stated thousands upon thousands, even lakhs of times, that my family does not exist. My family is the party. The chief minister declared, "The people are my family."

"There are perhaps 32 people in our family when blood relatives alone are taken into account, and no one else is like this. My entire family is furious with Babun for his comments. I'm going to be blunt: there are instances when people exhibit greed. I detest greed,” she continued. "I am cutting all ties with him, as am I with my blood relations family and the larger Ma-Mati-Manush family."

Mamata stated that she has been unhappy with Babun's actions for some time. Often times, people experience rage but are unable to respond. Babu can travel wherever he pleases. I believe in manushtantra (democracy), but if every member of my family gets a ticket, it will turn into a parivartantra (dynastocracy)," the woman remarked.

"I demonstrated my stance against dynasty politics with a live example. From now on, it is our greater duty to guarantee Prasun's triumph. It has been questioned by a few avaricious persons, Mamata added. "I've always been bothered by him (Babun) before every election."

The leader of Trinamul, along with her party, emphasised the incident as proof that she rejects dynastic politics, a criticism that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah frequently level at her due to her nephew Abhishek Banerjee's ascent to prominence in Trinamul.

Babun has raised the hackles of rebellion over Mamata's choice of three-term MP and former football player Prasun Banerjee for Howrah, amid rumors of his aspirations to join the BJP. Babun declared that if needed, he will run as an Independent. In Maidan politics, Babun and Prasun, the brother of the late football legend P.K. Banerjee, have long been rivals. Babun stated that he had hoped to take the 69-year-old MP's seat in Howrah this time around.

Following Mamata's rant, Babun quickly changed his mind. Before her remark, there were rumors that the BJP had turned him down in backchannel discussions in Delhi.

"I'm not visiting the BJP. I will not run for office anywhere as an Independent. I take everything Didi has said about me as a blessing from her. Babun declared, "I want to stay her brother, nothing more."

Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP declared later in the day that his organization would "never induct a person from that family."

He said, "We will expose him for his actions over the last few days."

There had been much conjecture ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections over the potential joining of the BJP by Kartik Banerjee, another brother of Mamata. Kartik Banerjee's wife, Kajari Banerjee, was elected to the Calcutta Municipal Corporation council in 2022 on a Trinamul ticket.

The party is needlessly embarrassed by these things. These actions amount to betraying Didi at a very inconvenient moment—not that there is ever a good moment for betrayal. An insider within Trinamul claimed that Babun was both hurt and enraged.

After defeating former Bagan players Sishir Ghosh and Bidesh Bose in an executive committee meeting chaired by then general secretary Anjan Mitra, Babun was chosen football secretary of Mohun Bagan in May 2018.

Not long after, Prasun and Babun had a falling out, and the club's internal squabbling broke out during an event held there. It is said that Prasun grabbed the microphone away from Babun by climbing the dais without authorization. At the gathering, members of both factions had exchanged punches, necessitating police intervention.

Babun was a member of Anjan Mitra's group, but Prasun was loyal to the group headed by Debashish Dutta, the former treasurer, and his son, Swapan Sadhan (Tutu) Bose, who was also the club president.

Babun had remarked about Prasun, before to Mamata's press conference: "Someone who has no ability to pass even Class V is being sent to for graduation."

"I was informed that I could receive a ticket in 2019 and 2021. He had stated, "There was a possibility again this time... yes, I am unhappy," and that Prasun was "allergic."

"There were a lot of superior possibilities... Nevertheless, a bad individual who was unpopular with the public was nominated once more," he had stated. "I'll explain my decision if she (Mamata) calls."

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Press Time staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.