Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], June 9 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Raju Bista on Tuesday blamed the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for 20 of its MPs extending support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre, declaring that TMC is solely responsible for this debacle and has no future electoral prospects hence BJP is not responsible for this development.

In a statement to ANI, Bista alleged that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) functions under a 'dictatorship model.'

'TMC and its leadership are themselves to blame for this. It has no future left...those who destroyed democracy in West Bengal have no democracy within their own party. They have run the entire organisation like a dictatorship...they forged the signatures of MLAs and sent documents to the Speaker to select the Leader of the Opposition...there was no shift in behaviour from before the election to after it. Now, TMC leaders, MPs, and MLAs do not want to stay in the party, and the BJP cannot be held responsible for that,' said Bista.

Bista's remarks came after a viral graphic circulated on social media, which claimed that a 'separate group' of 20 Trinamool Congress (TMC) Members of Parliament is set to extend support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre.

The claim, which has surfaced amid the ongoing political developments in the national capital, lists several prominent TMC leaders and newly elected MPs.

According to the viral image, the group allegedly includes Kakoli Dastidar, Satabdi Roy, Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia, Partha Bhowmick, Pratima Mondal, Bapi Halder, Mala Roy, Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Prasun Banerjee, June Malia, Sharmila Sarkar, Asit Kumar Mal, Mitali Bag, Deepak Adhikari (Dev), Kalipada Soren, Arup Chakraborty, Yusuf Pathan, Rachna Banerjee, Abu Taher Khan, and Saugata Roy.

It is claimed in the circulating post that these 20 lawmakers have formed a distinct faction within the Mamata Banerjee-led party to back the NDA government.

Reacting to this development, All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) leader Kirti Azad dismissed a viral social media post, calling it a 'fake and fabricated' list floated by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Taking to X, Kirti Azad claimed that the attempt to create a rift within the party has failed and asserted that several MPs mentioned in the list have already denied signing any such documents.

'This fake and fabricated list has been floated by the BJP. Six out of these have categorically denied having signed on any documents/papers. Operation Lotus has failed. Amit Shah has failed,' Azad wrote on X. (ANI)