Sources claim Mamata Banerjee's inner circle initially advised the MAITC chief against contesting the crucial Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls, citing limited chances of victory and pressure on party workers. MAITC chief Mamata Banerjee was apparently counselled by her inner circle not to fight the crucial by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar. Sources said Derek O'Brien, Kunal Ghosh and Dola Sen argued that the MAITC had no hope of winning the bypolls. They added that the party workers would face massive pressure from the ruling party if they stood their ground and that it would be a safer alternative to support the Congress candidates in the fray instead of the BJP. Banerjee was apparently on the brink of accepting their advice until Kalyan Banerjee came up with a contrary opinion. A source privy to the development said Kalyan Banerjee was of the view that not contesting the by-elections would have adverse repercussions on Kalighat's position in the name, symbol and funds tussle. It was only after his interjection that Mamata Banerjee chose to keep the MAITC symbol in the poll fray. The dissension within the party started brewing soon after. Ghosh reportedly lambasted the decision to contest the bypolls in a Facebook post which he later deleted. In Rejinagar, the MAITC candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury 'voluntarily' stepped down from the fray before announcing his candidature once again after holding discussions with Mamata Banerjee. In Nandigram, the MAITC was still reeling under the adverse impact of Sanchita Pradhan Dey's resignation from her post as MLA of the party. The episode unveiled the rift within the ranks of MAITC over the issue. While some leaders were of the opinion that the by-elections should not be contested, others felt that the decision to stay out would weaken the party's position in the state. Though leaning towards the former opinion in the beginning, Mamata Banerjee finally chose to stay in the fray. Sabyasachi Roy Chowdhury is a senior reporter with Times Network and has over 7 years of experience in the media industry. Covers majorly political st... View More