Mamata Banerjee lambasts rebels with 'Girgiti' poem after Bengal poll rout

KOLKATA: As TMC grapples with a deepening internal crisis following the party’s crushing poll setback, former chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday appeared to hit back at dissenters within the organisation through a sharply worded poem titled “Girgiti (Chameleon)”.Penned in Bengali and shared on her Facebook page, the poem is widely being viewed as an indirect attack on rebel leaders and functionaries who have either resigned from party posts or publicly criticised the leadership in the aftermath of the electoral rout.“More dangerous than a chameleon — at least a shape-shifter changes colour for its livelihood,” Mamata wrote in the opening lines of the poem.The poem further accused such individuals of “changing colours and character within hours” and “selling the self-respect of people and workers” for personal gain, in what is seen as a clear swipe at leaders questioning the party leadership amid the crisis.In the concluding lines, the Trinamool supremo also appeared to issue a warning to the rebels, hinting that they would eventually face consequences for their actions during the party’s difficult phase.“Just as the wheels of the chariot will move, so will your wheels move. You will get results. On that day, the traitors will understand what valueless inhumanity is all about,” the poem read.The poem came on a day when the wave of resignations and dissent within Trinamool continued to intensify. KMC Borough XII chairman Sushanta Ghosh resigned from his post, while party spokesperson and councillor Arup Chakraborty stepped down as a member of the KMC accounts committee.Barasat MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar also sent another resignation letter to Trinamool state president Subrata Bakshi, stepping down from all organisational posts while clarifying she was not quitting the party.Former minister and singer Indranil Sen too announced that he would withdraw from electoral politics.Several leaders blamed the party’s electoral debacle on the growing “VVIP culture” within Trinamool and accused sections of the leadership of failing to protect grassroots workers after the elections.Dastidar, in her letter, referred to allegations linked to the ration scam, recruitment irregularities and the RG Kar rape-and-murder controversy, saying such incidents had fuelled public anger and distrust.Mamata had earlier hinted at the brewing rebellion during her first interaction with newly elected legislators after the results, saying those unwilling to stay with the party were free to leave.Her latest poem is now being interpreted in political circles as a direct message to dissidents at a time when the ruling party is battling one of its biggest internal crises in recent years.