In the midst of speculations over his next political move, discontented Ex (amid him quitting recently) Trinamool Congress leader Suvendu Adhikari as he slammed the TMC over the ‘insider-outsider’ debate and said those arriving from other states can’t be branded as outsiders, on Tuesday. Adhikari, who quit from the state cabinet and has been keeping distance from the party over the last few months, said, he is first an Indian and then a Bengali.
He also blamed the TMC leadership, by saying they are giving more importance to the party than people. Adhikari was addressing the birth anniversary celebrations of freedom fighter Satish Chandra Samanta at Haldia in Purba Medinipur district.
Referring to the insider-outsider debate triggered by the TMC leadership to counter the BJP in the 2021 assembly polls, Adhikari said, Bengal is very much a part of India and “people coming from other states can’t be treated as outsiders”. The ruling party in West Bengal has often alleged the BJP for sending its leaders from other states to rig up for the Assembly polls.
“For us, we are first Indians and then Bengalis.Satish Chandra Samanta was a stalwart parliamentarian from Medinipur. Even the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru used to respect him a lot. Neither Satish Chandra Samanta ever called Nehru an outsider nor did Nehru ever brand him as a non-Hindi speaking MP. There was mutual respect,” Adhikari said, resonating the views of the BJP party on the insider- outsider debate.
