Tapas Roy joins BJP in West Bengal: 'Want to fight misrule, atrocities of TMC'

Tapas Roy, a former Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader, who had quit West Bengal's ruling party two days ago, joined the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) on Wednesday.

On Monday, Roy had resigned as TMC MLA citing disillusionment with the party leadership.

Roy said that he wants to fight ‘misrule’ and ‘atrocities’ of the ruling TMC. 

“I have joined the BJP today, as I want to fight against the misrule and atrocities of the TMC," he said, after being handed over the party flag from BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar and Suvendu Adhikari here.

However, the TMC has said that Roy abandoned his principles and ideologies in his quest for personal gains.

On Roy joining the , TMC leader Santanu Sen said that the people of Bengal would never forgive traitors like , who quit the party for “vested interests".

“TMC gave him all the posts possible, and he backstabbed the party. He has no ideology or principle. He ran away in fear of ED raid, or they must have offered him something big. He surrendered himself to BJP and the people of Bengal will not forgive him for this," Sen added.

After Roy resigned from the TMC, BJP leader had called him an “experienced politician" and that the saffron party would send him a proposal to them. 

"Tapas Roy is a veteran politician in our state, having been elected as an MLA four times. He is an experienced politician. We will send him a proposal to join politics after discussing with the party and obtaining consent from the top leadership," Adhikari had said. 

Roy, a five-time MLA, had accused the and its supremo Mamata Banerjee of "deserting him during trying circumstances", expressing his frustration over the party's silence when his residence was raided by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on January 12