TC to embark on membership drive

Ahead of the crucial polls scheduled in Kolkata Municipal Corporation and 81 municipalities next year, ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal today decided to embark on a membership drive to increase its support base.
"We will launch membership drive from 1st January, 2015. It will continue till 31 December 2015," TC secretary-general and state education minister Partha Chatterjee told a press conference at the party headquarters here.
He said that renewal of the party membership would also be undertaken during the same period.
"We have formed a Scrutiny Committee to monitor membership drive," Chatterjee said.
He said besides himself, the state party president Subrata Buxi, the party general secretary Mukul Roy, the party MP and nephew of Mamata Banerjee, Abhishek Banerjee and the two other party leaders Firhad Hakim and Arup Biswas, who are state urban development and housing ministers respectively are the members of the scrutiny committee.

He said that views of presidents of the party's district units would be taken before enrolling a new member and renewal of membership.

"We will spread the message of development throughout the State", Chatterjee said.
The move comes in the wake of BJP's bid to capture the major opposition political space amid the Left's sharp decline in West Bengal.
The move also comes at a time when chief minister Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress is faced with BJP campaign against the party-led government's handling of the Burdwan blast case and the Saradah chit fund scam, with some ruling party leaders being accused of being involved.

The state BJP unit, backed by the party's central leadership, is trying to make the best of the situation and gain in the coming municipal elections to be followed by assembly polls slated for mid-2016.