BJP leadership will decide when I can join party: Dev

Silchar: Former TMC Rajya Sabha member Sushmita Dev on Thursday said the timing of her formal induction into BJP would be decided by the party leadership. She said this days after resigning from TMC and her RS seat.Returning to Silchar from New Delhi, Dev confirmed that she met Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma after quitting TMC and conveyed her desire to join BJP.“After resigning from TMC and Rajya Sabha, I met CM Sarma, discussed various issues in detail and sought his guidance. I also expressed my desire to join BJP,” she told the media at her residence in Tarapur.However, she said the decision on when she would formally enter BJP rested with the party leadership.“Whenever BJP allows me to join the party, it will happen. I am awaiting the party leadership’s response. I cannot ask them to induct me today, tomorrow or a month later,” she added.Amid intense speculation over her political future, Dev did not rule out the possibility of returning to the Rajya Sabha, including from West Bengal with BJP support. She maintained that her foremost priority was to work for Assam, particularly the Barak Valley, and noted that public service for the state could be pursued from the Rajya Sabha even if elected from another state.

"My priority is to work for Assam and the Barak Valley. The future course of events remains uncertain, and time will tell," she said.Her remarks have fuelled speculation about the role she could be assigned if she joins the BJP. Political observers believe she could be considered for the forthcoming Nagaon by-election, the Karimganj Lok Sabha seat, or a Rajya Sabha berth from West Bengal.Dev also praised the BJP-led govt's development initiatives in Assam over the past decade, saying the state witnessed significant progress during this period.The daughter of late Union minister and Congress stalwart Santosh Mohan Dev, Sushmita Dev was one of the Congress's most prominent leaders from the Northeast. She represented the Silchar Lok Sabha constituency from 2014 to 2019 and also served as national president of the All India Mahila Congress.In 2021, she quit Congress and joined the TMC as part of the party's expansion efforts beyond West Bengal. She was subsequently elected to the Rajya Sabha from West Bengal and emerged as one of the party's key voices in Parliament.Her resignation from both the TMC and the Rajya Sabha has triggered fresh political realignments in Assam, particularly in the Barak Valley, where she continues to command considerable influence.