• Source:JND
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BJP leader and former Union Minister John Barla joined the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Thursday, alleging that the BJP had stopped him from working for the welfare of tribal communities. John Barla, who was elected from Alipurduars, Kolkata, on a BJP ticket in 2019 and served as Minister of State for Minority Affairs, had expressed his dissatisfaction  after being denied a ticket for the 2024 Lok Sabha election. 

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The BJP replaced John Barla with Manoj Tigga, the party’s chief whip in the West Bengal Assembly, as its candidate for Alipurduars. Tigga went on to win the seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“I was not allowed to work for the development of the tribal people during my time in the BJP,” Barla said after formally joining the TMC. I believe under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, I will be able to do justice to the cause of the tribal population,” he said.

Since being dropped as a candidate, Barla had distanced himself from the BJP’s West Bengal leadership, fueling speculation about his political future.

Earlier, John Barla attended an administrative meeting led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday, intensifying speculation about his plans to join West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).

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“Mamata Banerjee came here because she wants development of this region. She called me,” Barla told journalists.

Before the meeting in North Bengal’s Alipurduar district, Mamata Banerjee and John Barla exchanged pleasantries. When asked about his plans to join the TMC, Barla responded with a brief, “Wait and see.”

As with all administrative meetings chaired by Banerjee in the districts, the event was attended by TMC leaders, bureaucrats, and local residents.