NCPI parliamentary leader Sudip Banerjee attended the NDA's 'Mangal Milan' meeting in Parliament on Tuesday, taking a front-row seat alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Before the meeting, Sudip asserted that the party remained "completely united."
However, shortly after his statement, the absence of three NCPI MPs—Abu Taher (Murshidabad), Khalilur Rahaman (Jangipur) and Yusuf Pathan (Berhampore)—drew attention and reignited political speculation.
The trio has been at the centre of rumours suggesting they are interested in returning to the Trinamool Congress. Those reports gained momentum after senior TMC leader Sougata Roy publicly expressed hope that former party members would return, while TMC leader Kunal Ghosh recently claimed that several MPs and MLAs who had left the party remain in regular contact with the Trinamool leadership.
Tuesday's NDA meeting also marked Sudip Banerjee's return after he missed the alliance's previous parliamentary meeting, where chief whip Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar represented NCPI and was seated alongside Prime Minister Modi and Amit Shah. This time, both Sudip and Kakoli occupied seats in the front row, while MP Satabdi Roy was seen in the second row.
Later on Tuesday, Sudip, Kakoli and other NCPI MPs are scheduled to meet Chief Minister Shubhendu Adhikari at Banga Bhavan in New Delhi. According to Sudip, the meeting will focus on improving coordination between MPs and the state administration and accelerating development work in their respective constituencies.
Despite Sudip's assertion of party unity, the absence of three MPs from the high-profile NDA meeting has added fresh fuel to speculation over possible political realignments within the NCPI.
