A rift among BJP MLAs in the Bengal Assembly over walkouts and other disruptive practices became evident on Thursday when Chakdaha legislator Bankim Ghosh, otherwise known to be a loyalist of leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, said those were “mistakes”.

In a remark that left everyone from Adhikari to his trusted lieutenant, Opposition chief whip Shankar Ghosh, uncomfortable, Bankim said MLAs should remain inside the House, instead of staging walkouts daily in protest.

“We should have stayed inside the House and participated in discussions on crucial subjects like health and education,” he said, clarifying that it was his “personal opinion”.

On Thursday too, the BJP MLAs walked out of the Assembly in protest against an alleged attack by Trinamool Congress workers and supporters on Adhikari and other BJP legislators in Baruipur the previous day. They also staged demonstrations outside the Assembly, burnt papers and effigies and abstained from participating in the session even as discussions on the last day of the budget session’s second half were underway.

Bankim, a resident of Haringhata in Nadia and a former CPM leader who once served as a member of the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee cabinet, questioned the wisdom of boycotting such processes.

“We could not stay inside the House during the budget discussions on health and education, for instance. We boycotted the session and came out. But it seems we made a mistake,” he said outside.

“We need to reflect on this decision in the coming days.”

Arguing that the BJP MLAs should participate in Assembly debates for the sake of the people, Bankim said health and education are two crucial subjects, but the BJP boycotted the House.

“In my personal opinion, I think we did not make the right decision. We should have stayed inside and spoken.... These two subjects required our presence and participation,” he added.

The BJP MLAs have boycotted not only the second half of the budget session but also much of the 17th Assembly that began functioning in 2021 when Adhikari took charge as the leader of the Opposition.

Underscoring his frustration, Bankim said: “The House belongs to the Opposition. We were elected to speak for the people on the floor of the House. Our voices should be heard in the House, but we have fallen into a trap, although it was set by the government.”

“I believe we need to thoroughly rethink our strategy. We must protest inside the Assembly, adhere to the processes and duly participate in the House for constructive, meaningful Opposition,” he added.

Sources said the remarks left Adhikari “uncomfortable and upset”.

However, Bankim later denied any internal disagreements.

“Opposition MLAs are being silenced. Whenever they tried to speak, ruling party MLAs interrupted, the Speaker cut short their time, or suspended them and sometimes evicted them with the help of marshals. This is not how democracy should function,” he claimed in a clarificatory statement to this newspaper.

The sources said Bankim had been “spoken to” by then.

He insisted that the BJP MLAs were not walking out voluntarily but were being forced to do so in response to “undemocratic” actions by Speaker Biman Banerjee and the Treasury benches.

“All decisions regarding walkouts have been in line with the party strategy. None of us, including myself, has spoken against the party line,” he said.

A state general secretary of the BJP, Jagannath Chattopadhyay, claimed there was no internal difference and backed Bankim’s comments.

“Bankim Ghosh simply pointed out that our MLAs are being forced to walk out because of the Speaker’s undemocratic conduct. He said nothing wrong. The Speaker and the ruling party are attempting to suppress the voice of opposition MLAs,” he claimed.

Complaint

Adhikari filed a complaint via email with Baruipur police on Wednesday night regarding the alleged attack on him and other BJP MLAs by Trinamool workers supporters. The BJP also moved Calcutta High Court, accusing police of security lapses.