Bengal Guv warns two new TMC MLAs of 'Rs 500 daily fine' if they attend assembly sessions

A Raj Bhavan email sent to the TMC MLAs, who won the bye-elections last month, noted that if they had not been administered the oath to be inducted as legislative assembly members by Deputy Speaker Ashish Banerjee, their swearing-in would be 'unconstitutional'.

Kolkata: The conflict between the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata and the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal escalated with Governor C V Ananda Bose’s office warning the party’s two newly elected legislators that they would have to pay a fine of Rs 500 daily if they attend the state assembly sessions.

Notwithstanding the warning from the Raj Bhavan to the two MLAs, four other new legislators of the TMC may be sworn in as members of the assembly on Tuesday, with Speaker Biman Banerjee administering the oath to them.

Sayantika Banerjee and Reyat Hossain Sarkar, who won the bye-elections in the Baranagar and Bhagabangola constituencies of the state last month, received emails from the Raj Bhavan, which noted that if they had not been administered the oath to be inducted as members of the legislative assembly by Deputy Speaker Ashish Banerjee, as desired by the governor, their swearing-in would be deemed unconstitutional.

The governor's office also pointed out that Sayantika and Reyat would have to pay a fine of Rs 500 every day if they were to attend the legislative assembly sessions without being sworn in constitutionally.

Sayantika and Reyat attended the state assembly elections on Monday and told journalists that they would also do so on Tuesday too. They told journalists that they would not be paying any fine as they would not be doing anything wrong by attending state assembly sessions as the representatives of the people of their constituencies.

The two TMC nominees had been declared winners in the bye-elections in the respective constituencies on June 4. The governor wanted to administer oaths to them in the Raj Bhavan. They, however, did not go to the Raj Bhavan.

The governor then assigned Deputy Speaker Asish Banerjee to administer the oath to the new MLAs, but he declined to do that saying that it would be inappropriate as Speaker Biman Banerjee was available to do it himself.

The Speaker finally administered the oath to the two new MLAs on July 5.

After four more TMC nominees – Madhuparna Thakur, Supti Pandey, Mukutmani Adhikari, and Krishna Kalyani – won the bypolls held earlier this month, the Speaker sent a letter to the Raj Bhavan, requesting him to administer the oaths to them. The Raj Bhavan, however, in response enquired about the swearing-in of Sayantika and Reyat.

The Speaker is now likely to administer the oaths to the Thakur, Pandey, Adhikari and Kalyani as well during the assembly session on Tuesday, according to the sources.