NEW DELHI: Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) was allotted seat numbers for its 29-member contingent by Lok Sabha secretariat in a written communication on July 19, without TMC floor leaders having approached Speaker Om Birla “independently” of INDIA bloc, at any juncture, for seating arrangement in the House, party’s Sudip Bandopadhyay told TOI on Sunday.
He was responding to reports that TMC has held “separate” talks with the Speaker for its share of seats.
Trashing the reports as “BJP‘s dirty tricks”, TMC floor leaders asserted that the party is with INDIA bloc and has been with opposition coalition from first day of the 18th Lok Sabha. “Any claim about an independent line with the Speaker for seats is out of question,” Bandopadhyay said.
He told TOI, “TMC did not ask for any seats. I received a letter from Lok Sabha secretariat along with the seat numbers which have been allocated for us. I discussed this with Mamata Banerjee and submitted our list two days ago (on Friday). It is already done and there cannot be any dispute on this.”
“We sent the list back, indicating our internal seating arrangement according to seniority of the members in the House and made our list, on the allotted numbers that were given to us,” he added.
Reacting sharply to the reports, TMC representative in Rajya Sabha Derek O’Brien said, “TMC condemns such dirty tricks and fake news being done by BJP and a section of the media. Our seating in Parliament is with INDIA bloc. We were provided a list of seats by the Speaker’s office which is in the same area of opposition (INDIA) bloc.”
Bandopadhyay will be only TMC member in the first row, on seat number 278. Second-row seat numbers 280 and 281, will be for deputy leader Kalyan Banerjee and party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. Two seats (284 & 285) in third row are marked for senior MPs Saugata Roy and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar. Two seats (288 & 289) in the fourth row are marked for Mahua Moitra and Satabdi Roy.
He was responding to reports that TMC has held “separate” talks with the Speaker for its share of seats.
Trashing the reports as “BJP‘s dirty tricks”, TMC floor leaders asserted that the party is with INDIA bloc and has been with opposition coalition from first day of the 18th Lok Sabha. “Any claim about an independent line with the Speaker for seats is out of question,” Bandopadhyay said.
He told TOI, “TMC did not ask for any seats. I received a letter from Lok Sabha secretariat along with the seat numbers which have been allocated for us. I discussed this with Mamata Banerjee and submitted our list two days ago (on Friday). It is already done and there cannot be any dispute on this.”
“We sent the list back, indicating our internal seating arrangement according to seniority of the members in the House and made our list, on the allotted numbers that were given to us,” he added.
Reacting sharply to the reports, TMC representative in Rajya Sabha Derek O’Brien said, “TMC condemns such dirty tricks and fake news being done by BJP and a section of the media. Our seating in Parliament is with INDIA bloc. We were provided a list of seats by the Speaker’s office which is in the same area of opposition (INDIA) bloc.”
Bandopadhyay will be only TMC member in the first row, on seat number 278. Second-row seat numbers 280 and 281, will be for deputy leader Kalyan Banerjee and party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. Two seats (284 & 285) in third row are marked for senior MPs Saugata Roy and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar. Two seats (288 & 289) in the fourth row are marked for Mahua Moitra and Satabdi Roy.