Mannan accuses TMC of poaching on opposition MLAs

Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Abdul Mannan today accused the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of "poaching" on Congress and Left Front MLAs and said it was "immoral" to defect after winning the election on the symbol of another party.
"They (TMC) have won 211 seats (in the last Assembly polls) but still, they want more seats. They are poaching on Congress and Left MLAs. Once they join the TMC, they are inducted into the party's core committee. But, the TMC is shying away from publishing the list of members of the party's core committee," he told reporters here.

The Congress leader asked the TMC to "come clean" on the "political status" of the defectors.
Mannan's comments came in the wake of senior Congress leader Manas Bhuniya's recent defection to the TMC.
Since the May 2016 Assembly polls, three Congress MLAs have switched over to the TMC, bringing down the Congress tally in the Assembly to 41 from 44.
Stating that it was "immoral" to defect after winning the election on the symbol of another party, Mannan said he was seeking legal steps to amend the anti-defection law.
"In a democracy, political activists have the right to change their political party. But, they should resign from their seats which they have won as representatives of the Congress party," he said.