Abhishek Banerjee to Meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla amid TMC Split Row

NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee will present the party’s stand on the split within its parliamentary ranks and oppose the recognition of a rebel faction as he is scheduled to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday evening to, sources said.

They will meet at 5 pm in the Speaker’s Parliament Chamber as sources revealed. The meeting assumes significance as the Speaker considers a demand by 20 rebel TMC Lok Sabha MPs seeking recognition as a separate group after announcing their merger with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).

Sources said Birla had invited the TMC Lok Sabha leader to present the party’s views before taking a decision on the rebels’ plea. The ruling Trinamool Congress is expected to argue that the breakaway legislators should not be granted separate group status, maintaining that the split does not meet the constitutional and procedural requirements for such recognition.