Bengali actor Srabanti Chatterjee quits BJP
Kolkata(PTI): Bengali actor Srabanti Chatterjee, who had joined the BJP before this year's assembly elections and unsuccessfully contested against TMC heavyweight Partha Chatterjee, quit the saffron party on Thursday citing its "lack of initiative and sincerity to further the cause of West Bengal".
The 34-year-old actor had been maintaining a distance from the saffron party after it failed to unseat Mamata Banerjee's government from power in the eastern state despite a high-pitched campaign.
"Severing all ties with the BJP, the party for which I fought the last state elections. Reason being their lack of initiative and sincerity to further the cause of Bengal," Chatterjee tweeted.
The West Bengal BJP, however, did not attach much importance to Chatterjee's decision and asserted that "it would hardly impact the party".
"I really don't know whether she was with the party after the elections. It won't have an impact on the party," BJP state chief Sukanta Majumdar said.
Echoing him, BJP leader Tathagata Roy, who has been training his guns on the party top brass for the election debacle, called Chatterjee's quitting the party a "good riddance".
Roy had criticised the BJP for inducting people with no political background, especially those from the entertainment world, and fielding them in the assembly elections while ignoring loyal and trusted party workers.
"Good riddance. I don't recall if she had any meaningful contributions in all the days," the former Meghalaya and Tripura governor said.
Chatterjee, who was once close to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the TMC, joined the BJP in March this year. She was fielded in the Behala Paschim seat, where she was defeated by state minister Partha Chatterjee by over 50,000 votes.
The actor joins a long list of celebrities and leaders who have either quit the BJP or are maintaining a distance from the party after its defeat in the polls.
Severing all ties with the BJP, the party for which I fought the last state elections.Reason being their lack of initiative and sincerity to further the cause of Bengal...
— Srabanti (@srabantismile) November 11, 2021
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Eight women labourers killed as truck hits tempo on Nagpur-Mumbai expressway
Jalna/Mumbai (PTI): Eight women labourers were killed, and three others were injured after a speeding truck rammed into a tempo on the Nagpur-Mumbai Expressway in Jalna district of Maharashtra on Wednesday evening, police said.
The incident occurred when a group of women was returning home after completing cleaning work on the expressway.
"A total of 11 persons, including the driver, were sitting in the tempo. As the vehicle was about to start, a speeding truck headed towards Mumbai rammed into it from behind at Kadvanchi village," a police official said, adding that seven women died on the spot and another succumbed in the Jalna government hospital.
The tempo was badly mangled, and the bodies were reportedly strewn across the road.
The deceased have been identified as Alkabai Admane (45), Laxmibai Madan (35), Meena Admane (45), Kanchan Admane (50), Tarabai Choudhari (60), Kadubai Madan (55), and Suman Admane (70), all residents of Jalna tehsil.
The identity of the eighth deceased is yet to be confirmed.
Three people are undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Police have arrested the truck driver and registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Further investigation is underway.
Expressing grief, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the death of eight people is extremely unfortunate, and announced a financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.
Fadnavis paid heartfelt tributes to the deceased and expressed solidarity with their families.
He said in a statement the injured have been immediately admitted to hospitals and the local administration is coordinating relief efforts.
The district collector and the superintendent of police are present at the spot, overseeing the situation, the chief minister added.
Environment Minister and Jalna District Guardian Minister Pankaja Munde has expressed deep sorrow over the incident.
In a condolence message, Munde extended her sympathies to the families of the deceased.
