In a desperate bid to overcome internal bickerings and organisational weaknesses prior to the next Lok Sabha polls, the Trinamool Congress today decided to come down heavily on dissidents’ activities by imposing a blanket ban on warring party leaders from going to the press to air their ‘‘grievances’’. The party further warned that those violating the decision would face disciplinary action. The decision was taken at the two-day special session of the party which concluded here during the day.Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee, while speaking on the resolution on the party’s organisational matters, regretted that when the need of the hour was to gear up the organisational machinery and project a united face before the Lok Sabha polls, certain leaders were out to wreck the party from within by engaging themselves in internal squabbles.‘‘This cannot be allowed to continue and those going to the press to air grievances instead of discussing them at the party forums will face disciplinary action’’, she warned. Party general secretary Partha Chatterjee said it was decided at the meeting that if any leader was found to have violated the decision he or she would have to immediately issue a rejoinder with a copy to the party chief or general secretary Mukul Roy.The step has come in the backdrop of fresh internal bickerings which had cropped up recently after party MLA Nirbed Roy made ‘‘derogatory’’ remarks against Mamata’s city Mayor Subrata Mukherjee. This had created ripples in party circles with several party councillors demanding disciplinary action against the legislator following which the party served a show cause notice to Roy last week.The special session was attended by Mamata’s estranged colleague Sudip Bandopadhyay and former union minister Ajit Panja, among other MLAs, councillors and party functionaries. During her address, Mamata reiterated the party would remain in the NDA and said: ‘‘We will strengthen the hands of the Prime Minister and contest the next Lok Sabha polls in alliance with BJP in the state.”
