- Suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir launches Jannata Unnayun Party (JUP)
- Kabir accuses CM Mamata Banerjee of corruption, vows to unseat her
- Praises Abhishek Banerjee, hints at future leadership role
- TMC dismisses move; BJP calls it a political ploy
GG News Bureau
Kolkata, 22nd Dec: Suspended Trinamool Congress MLA Humayun Kabir on Monday launched his new political outfit, the Jannata Unnayun Party (JUP), and mounted a fierce attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of corruption and declaring his mission to remove her from power in the 2026 Assembly elections.
Addressing a public meeting in Beladanga, Kabir said that while Mamata Banerjee’s leadership was once “unquestionable,” she was “no longer the same person” he had known 15 years ago. He claimed her governance had changed fundamentally and warned that he would expose alleged financial irregularities involving her family.
“In 2026, she will not be sworn in again. She will be known as the former Chief Minister,” Kabir asserted, also alleging that political collusion had allowed the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to expand its footprint in West Bengal.
Interestingly, even as he targeted the Trinamool supremo, Kabir praised her nephew and senior party leader Abhishek Banerjee, calling him a “talented youth” capable of emerging as a strong leader if given decision-making freedom.
Kabir announced that JUP would contest around 135 Assembly seats, projecting the party as a platform for the “aam aadmi, including Muslims,” and claimed it could facilitate the election of a large number of Muslim MLAs. He also hinted at a possible alliance with Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.
The Trinamool Congress dismissed Kabir’s move as inconsequential. Party spokesperson Jayprakash Majumdar termed JUP “a communal provocation,” claiming similar outfits had surfaced and faded in the past.
The Bharatiya Janata Party also downplayed Kabir’s relevance. State BJP president Samik Bhattacharya alleged that Kabir remained covertly aligned with the TMC and would face rejection by voters.
Kabir’s political career has seen frequent shifts. Expelled from the TMC in 2015 for criticising Mamata Banerjee, he later contested as an independent, joined the Congress briefly, and then moved to the BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, where he finished third from Murshidabad.
