Mamata Banerjee Refuses to Resign Following Assembly Election Defeat
KOLKATA, May 05 — Outgoing West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC leader Mamata Banerjee stated on Tuesday that she will not step down despite her party’s defeat in the assembly polls, characterizing the election results as a conspiracy rather than a genuine mandate from the public.
Speaking at a press conference, she claimed that the Trinamool Congress did not lose to the BJP but instead faced an Election Commission that allegedly favored the opposition. She maintained that the question of her resignation is irrelevant under these circumstances and challenged the authorities to proceed according to constitutional norms.
The TMC chief raised serious allegations regarding the integrity of the counting process, asserting that the mandate in approximately 100 constituencies was compromised.
Mamata Banerjee suggested that the counting of votes was intentionally delayed to discourage her supporters and described the outcome as a dark moment in history.
She specifically criticized Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing the commission of undermining the democratic rights of the people of West Bengal throughout the electoral process.In response to reports of unrest, Mamata Banerjee announced the creation of a 10-member fact-finding committee tasked with visiting areas reportedly affected by post-poll violence.
She dismissed previous allegations of violence from 2021 as baseless and shifted her focus to the national political landscape. After receiving calls of solidarity from INDIA bloc leaders, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, she expressed her intention to strengthen the opposition alliance moving forward.
The BJP secured 207 seats in the 294-member assembly, successfully ending 15 years of TMC governance.