Miffed over recent organisational appointments in West Bengal, many senior BJP leaders have launched an open attack against state unit brass. These senior leaders claim that “committed and old-time workers of the party” are being sidelined and new entrants to the party are indiscriminately promoted.

BJP West Bengal unit president Sukanta Majumdar has dissolved all existing departments and cells of the party in the state amid increasing conflict in the party. Majumdar, who took charge in September, had announced a new state committee on December 22. Vice-presidents Pratap Banerjee and Joy Prakash Majumdar, general secretary Sayantan Basu and others who have been prominent faces of the party earlier did not find a place in the organisation. However, Majumdar is not being blamed for the new list. A large number of the grievances has been directed against state BJP general secretary (organisation) and RSS old-timer Amitava Chakravorty.

The disgruntled leaders are set to meet at port guest house in Kolkata on Saturday night to discuss the future course of action. Protesting leaders include Matua community leader and Union minister Shantanu Thakur, MLAs belonging to the SC Matua-Namasudra community that voted significantly for the BJP in May, former vice-presidents Pratap Banerjee, Biswapriya Roy Choudhury, Ritesh Tewari, Jay Prakash Majumdar and former general secretaries Sayantan Basu, Sanjay Singh and Rathindra Basu.

“The people who toiled hard for the party to reach where it is today were the face of the party in West Bengal for years. They have been ignored to create a coterie of sorts… All of us stayed back even when the party decided to cancel our tickets to please the defectors during assembly polls. We don’t want to break the party, but we want to stop the party from making another mistake,” said a senior BJP leader on the condition of anonymity.