Former Silchar MP and Rajya Sabha member Sushmita Dev on June 10 confirmed that she has severed ties with the All India Trinamool Congress, a day after resigning from the Upper House, adding fresh momentum to speculation surrounding her political future.
Speaking to reporters, Dev publicly acknowledged her departure from the Mamata Banerjee-led party. “I have left Trinamool Congress. It is a long story why I left TMC. I don’t want to be in a situation where I am in two boats at the same time. I will not comment on Mamata Didi,” she said.
The statement marks her first public confirmation of quitting the party, although she declined to elaborate on the reasons behind her decision and refrained from commenting on TMC chief Mamata Banerjee.
Her exit comes amid reports that she met Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in New Delhi shortly after resigning from the Rajya Sabha. The meeting has intensified speculation that the former Congress leader could be headed to the Bharatiya Janata Party, though no official announcement has been made.
Daughter of veteran Congress leader Santosh Mohan Dev, Sushmita Dev represented Silchar in the Lok Sabha from 2014 to 2019. After losing the 2019 parliamentary election, she resigned from the Congress in 2021 and joined the Trinamool Congress as part of the party’s efforts to expand its footprint beyond West Bengal.
She subsequently emerged as one of the party’s prominent national leaders, serving as its national spokesperson before being nominated to the Rajya Sabha, where she played an active role in articulating the party’s views on national issues.
Her departure comes at a challenging time for the Trinamool Congress. Earlier this week, senior party leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy also resigned from the Upper House and cut ties with the party. In his resignation letter, Roy accused the TMC of corruption and governance failures and alleged that it had failed to address several issues confronting West Bengal.
The successive resignations have raised questions over internal cohesion within the Trinamool Congress and provided fresh ammunition to its political opponents.
With her departure now officially confirmed, attention has shifted to Dev’s next move. While she has not disclosed her future plans, political observers are closely watching developments, particularly given her influence in Assam’s Barak Valley and the implications her decision could have for the region’s political landscape.
