SON, ABHIJIT RETURNS TO CONGRESS
Abhijit Mukherjee was given the Congress membership at the party’s State headquarters in the presence of AICC general secretary and West Bengal in-charge Ghulam Ahmed Mir.
NEW DELHI: Former President late Pranab Mukherjee’s son Abhijit Mukherjee returned to the Congress on Thursday (February 12, 2025) after a four-year stint in the Trinamool Congress.
“This is like a second birthday for me in the Congress and in politics. As the grandson of a freedom fighter [Kamada Kinkar Mukherjee], it was a bad decision to quit the Congress. I ask forgiveness for it. I should not have left the Congress,” said Mukherjee at his formal induction ceremony at the party office here.
After formally signing his membership, the former Congress MP waved the party flag in the presence of West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar, AICC general secretary Ghulam Ahmad Mir, and other top regional leaders and party members.
Sarkar said Mukherjee’s schooling was through the Congress’s principles. “His journey started from here. He left us for some time. But now he is formally coming back to our party in alignment with our party ideals and morals.”
In a post on his social media handle on X, Mukherjee said: “I convey my sincere thanks & gratitude to Cong. President, Sh. Kharge ji, Sonia Madam, Rahul Ji, Priyanka Ji, Sh. Gulam Mir Sahab, Ms. Amba Prasad ji, Secretary Sahab & WBPCC President, Sh. Subhankar ji for allowing me to rejoin INC.”
Ignored in Trinamool: During his stint in the West Bengal’s ruling party, Mukherjee was not given any important roles. He was hardly seen at any public events of the party over the past four years. He was also ignored during the selection of candidates for the recent Rajya Sabha election.
While in the Trinamool Congress, he had praised Chief Minister and party chief Mamata Banerjee, saying that the manner in which she managed to stop the BJP surge in West Bengal was commendable. He had also shared his displeasure over not getting any major positions in the Congress.
Engineer to politician : An engineer by profession, the 65-year-old had worked with multiple corporate firms before joining politics in 2011. He won the West Bengal Jangipur Lok Sabha constituency in 2012 after Pranab Mukherjee vacated it to become the President. He defeated Communist Party of India (Marxist) candidate Muzaffar Hussain to fill his father’s shoes.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, Mukherjee was re-elected from the same seat but could not defend his position in 2019, when he lost to Trinamool’s Khalilur Rahaman.
After his father’s death in August 2020, Mukherjee quit the party and joined the Trinamool in 2021. His sister, Sharmistha Mukherjee, also quit active politics in 2021.