No intention of changing sides, stand firmly with Mamata ji: Shatrughan Sinha

Senior Trinamool Congress MP Shatrughan Sinha, whose name was claimed by the rebel camp to be among its supporters, on Thursday dismissed the speculation and reaffirmed his loyalty to Mamata Banerjee, saying she had stood by him during some of the most difficult phases of his political career. The veteran MP said Banerjee continues to enjoy strong public support and asserted that he has no intention of leaving the TMC.

Rebel MPs had claimed that Sinha was among the 19 Trinamool MPs who had submitted a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker, pledging allegiance to the BJP-led NDA in Parliament.

"I will not leave Mamata Banerjee in her difficult times. Very few people stood by me when I lost, or rather was made to lose, the Lok Sabha election from Patna in 2019, and Mamata Banerjee was one of them," Sinha said.

His remarks come at a time when the Trinamool Congress is witnessing a wave of defections by MPs and MLAs, pushing the party into one of the most serious internal crises in its history and bringing it to the brink of a vertical split.

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