Key facts
- Sushmita Dev, Sukhendu Roy, Prakash Baraik join BJP from TMC
- All three fielded for Rajya Sabha bypoll on same day
- Described as a significant setback for Mamata Banerjee's TMC
In a dramatic day for Bengal politics, Sushmita Dev, Sukhendu Roy, and Prakash Baraik — all former Trinamool Congress members — joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in Kolkata and were fielded as BJP candidates for the Rajya Sabha bypoll within hours of their defection.
The speed of the nominations underscored how carefully orchestrated the move was, with the BJP clearly having planned the switch well in advance. India Today and The Times of India both reported the development, describing it as a significant setback for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party. Sushmita Dev, a former Congress leader who had previously joined TMC, is among the more prominent political figures in the trio.
For the Trinamool Congress, the loss of three members with Rajya Sabha associations in a single stroke is a blow not just numerically but symbolically, suggesting cracks in party loyalty at a senior level. The TMC has yet to mount a formal public response to the defections, though the party is expected to contest the bypolls vigorously.
The episode is the latest in a series of political realignments in West Bengal, where the BJP has been working methodically to peel away TMC figures and consolidate opposition to Mamata Banerjee ahead of the next state assembly election cycle.