Trinamool Congress rebel Suvendu Adhikari likely to join BJP during Amit Shah's Bengal visit

The speculation was triggered after Shah's ministry upgraded the security cover of Adhikari to 'Z plus' from Z category.

Shah, the former BJP national president and still a powerful saffron party leader, will visit Adhikari's turf Medinipur on Dec 19.

Even after several rounds of talks with the Trinamool top brass and senior party leaders, Adhikari, who has resigned as the West Bengal Minister, refused to work for the party actively and continued to hold independent rallies. 

In a non-political rally in Haldia on Tuesday, Adhikari made a veiled attack on the Trinamool saying, "Let us bring the time where we would work for the people, by the people and for the people. Why will it be of the party, by the party and for the party."

"I never make personal attacks. There are some people who are attacking me. I remind them that they will be nothing short of people like Laksshman Seth (once a powerful Left leader from Tamluk)," he said.

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool supremo, Mamata Banerjee, sent out a strong message to the the rebels saying, "The Trinamool Congress' pledge is to work for people. There is no one superior or inferior in the party. I won't tolerate leaders, who after remaining in the party and the government for 10 years, are now hobnobbing with other parties."

Adhikari, whose father Sisir Adhikari and brother Dibyendu Adhikari are Trinamool MPs, had steered the 2007 Nandigram land movement which had led Banerjee to gain power in West Bengal.

In the last few years, the rift between Adhikari and the Trinamool top brass kept on widening resulting in the fallout.