Kolkata: Former Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma and 11 other Congress MLAs, who had defected to the Trinamul Congress last week, met party supremo Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on Monday.
In a video released by the TMC, the West Bengal CM was seen welcoming them to her party ceremonially with Uttariyo around their shoulder in her residence in Kalighat in presence of her MP nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
Mr Sangma and others, who have helped TMC to emerge as the main opposition party overnight in the North Eastern state, later attended the party's working committee meeting chaired by Ms Banerjee to decide the party's plans ahead of the Lok Sabha Election in 2024. Ms Banerjee later appointed Charles Pyngrope, one of the dozen MLAs, as TMC Meghalaya president.
Former JD(U) MP Pavan Verma who was inducted by Ms Banerjee into TMC in New Delhi last week and ace tennis player Leander Paes who is the party's face for the Goa assembly polls were present also.
TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien later said, "We are now growing nationally as a party. There will be no change in its DNA. But there will be some changes which will be undertaken by our supremo in the party's constitution. Besides, our party's representation will also be increased in Meghalaya and Haryana."
