TMC CRISIS DEEPENS | Why Did Santanu Sen Quit TMC? Watch This EXCLUSIVE Interview | News18

Added: 2026-05-31

[00:00:00]track how the new government is going to look. We also want to look at what the old government and what the party that was in power up until now faces.

[00:00:07]Shantanu Sen, former spokesperson of the TMC, former member of Rajya Sabha of the TMC as well, now joins us. Thank you so much for speaking with us, sir, here on CNN News18. You've resigned from your position as the national spokesperson of the party. Several other of your colleagues have also resigned from multiple posts that they hold in the party. Why are we seeing all of you senior leaders now making these comments, dissenting, and resigning?

[00:00:36]>> Well, I can speak about myself only.

[00:00:38]>> Sure.

[00:00:38]>> I can't take the responsibility regarding the decisions taken by the other leaders or other colleagues.

[00:00:47]So far myself is concerned, I joined Trinamool Congress on his birthday.

[00:00:52]Since then, whenever I was given given any responsibility, I tried to serve my best.

[00:00:58]Be it in the state of West Bengal, be it in the state of Tripura, be it in the state of Assam, be it in the state of Goa Goa, wherever.

[00:01:06]I was the spokesperson of Trinamool Congress, and that time it was my duty to defend my party.

[00:01:13]But while performing as a spokesperson, I had to face, I think most of our spokespersons had to face several awkward situations.

[00:01:22]Where, despite not getting consent from our inner self, we had to defend so many irregularities and so many corruption issues.

[00:01:32]But that time we tried to do our best as because we are performing as a spokesperson.

[00:01:38]We tried to convince the people at large. We tried to spread our voice. We tried to spread our thinking, our our message.

[00:01:47]But finally, a politician does politics for the people, for the voter.

[00:01:52]When on 4th of May, 2026, in the recently held West Bengal assembly election people gave a thumping majority to the opposition party.

[00:02:04]And people gave a clear-cut mandate against us.

[00:02:09]That indicates that whatever we are trying to convince the common people they didn't get convinced and they believed that we are not telling the truth.

[00:02:20]So, when it has become evident that people are not accepting us so now there is no way to defend all these once again on behalf of my party.

[00:02:29]So, taking accepting the mandate given by the common voters, common public I thought giving response to my own inner self it is my moral duty to resign from the national spokesperson-ship and that's why I have tendered my resignation to the national chairperson and former chief minister of state of West Bengal, Madam Mamata Banerjee.

[00:02:54]>> Was the RG Kar also one of the reasons why you felt the people rejected you? Is that one of the reasons why you felt that you had to resign because that was not handled properly by the TMC?

[00:03:07]>> So far the RG Kar issue is concerned that time I was the sitting MP of my party despite being inside the party, despite being a sitting MP if you ask who the whistle-blower was regarding the RG Kar corruption issue and regarding the rape and murder issue the answer will be Dr. Shantanu Sen.

[00:03:25]When I was working as the chairperson of Rogi Kalyan Samiti of RG Kar Medical College I found huge corruptions took place by the leadership of Dr. Sudipto Roy, the immediate past chairperson of Rogi Kalyan Samiti, the then principal, the main culprit who is behind the bar now, Dr. Sandeep Ghosh and one of the MLAs.

[00:03:47]I I brought the entire thing to the notice of the then government, the highest authority of the government and highest authority of the party. That time I didn't tell anything to any media.

[00:03:57]By I submitted all the documents expecting that justice will take place, investigation will take place against those. But unfortunately, I have seen instead of giving justice, I was removed from that particular post of chairmanship of Rogi Kalyan Samiti. On the contrary, I complained against Dr. Sudipto Roy and once again Dr. Sudipto Roy was brought in in that particular post. Unfortunately, Dr. Sandeep Ghosh, who was the main accused, he was transferred twice from RG Kar Medical College and within few days once again he was brought back. Even after the OV incident, when we and my wife, Dr. Kakuli Sen, who was also an ex-student of that particular medical college, when we tried to say something in favor of justice, whatever we had to face the entire world knows by now.

[00:04:47]My medical registration was suspended. I was heckled, humiliated. My wife was physically assaulted and above all, my only daughter, who used to be the medical student in that particular medical college at that time, her entire student life became miserable. It was made miserable by the then threat culture run by North Bengal lobby held by Dr. S.P. Das.

[00:05:10]My daughter was a scholar student by the grace of God. She used to get honors in several subjects. This This uh Sandeep Ghosh, he used to force, he tried to force rather the departmental heads that bring the paper and he you have to make Soumili fail.

[00:05:29]They canceled my registration and thereafter they started threatening me, threatening me that if you work if you move further, if you speak further, we will see how your daughter can become a doctor. You see, I'm a father first. I have seen the brutal naked the heinous character of this nexus of this North Bengal lobby led by SP Das and his all followers like Sudip Torai, Sushanta Rai, Obhik Birupaksha, Sandip Ghosh.

[00:05:55]He was They were cancelled Being an MP, I faced so many odd situations. They were cancelling my registration. They were heckling my wife who happens to be a counselor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation. They were threatening my daughter like anything.

[00:06:09]>> Doctor Sen, did you ever raise these issues with Mamata Banerjee personally or with Abhishek Banerjee? Were you able to get these issues across and ask them to intervene?

[00:06:17]>> me Let me Let me finish. Don't Don't interrupt me at the final moment.

[00:06:22]>> Sure.

[00:06:23]>> When I have seen that they They They can do so many things.

[00:06:28]Finally, after passing MBBS, departmental signatures are required to get the final certificate.

[00:06:34]I was sure that if I would have moved further, this Sandip Ghosh and this company, they could have instructed the head of the department not to sign the final completion paper. So, this then despite in spite of passing all the all the examinations in MBBS with honors, my daughter could not have got the final registration certificate and my daughter could not have become a doctor at last.

[00:06:58]So, that has shaken me.

[00:07:00]>> Mhm.

[00:07:00]>> That's why finally I I I was forced to remain silent. Yes, of course, during the Argikar corruption issue, once again I repeat, I didn't speak anything to media, but with all documents, with bunch of papers, I submitted to Nabanna and I submitted to health sector expecting that justice will take place.

[00:07:19]What happened? Instead of justice, I was removed from that particular post and those two, quote unquote, accused, Sandip Ghosh and Sudip Torai, once again they were brought back to that those particular chairs.

[00:07:32]>> Doctor Sen, another allegation that is being made by many TMC insiders now, uh some of your colleagues, is that uh there is a one-man decides-everything sort of a policy that's running and that is Abhishek Banerjee uh which is why there is there is very little internal democracy left anymore.

[00:07:49]All of the decisions are taken by Mr. Abhishek Banerjee. Those people, those leaders that have been part of the TMC for years or decades together are not getting any say. Is that something that you felt as well?

[00:08:02]>> No, I felt that we should accept the public mandate.

[00:08:05]We must not say that we are we we are not defeated. We must not say that we are accepting the public mandate. This is my answer. And number two, I am related to the health sector only. I strongly say once again yes, maybe the official health minister was someone else. But unofficially the de facto health minister was someone else who used to run this entire racket of corruption throughout the entire health sector.

[00:08:33]>> Who are you alluding to this someone else? Sorry if I could press you on that.

[00:08:39]>> I told you once again, this is the North Bengal lobby led by one orthopedic surgeon. I have named it I named him earlier.

[00:08:46]>> So this I-PAC role is also something that is being spoken of that political advisory groups like I-PAC were somebody that drove all of the decisions that were taken by the TMC. The assessment by ground leaders was not taken into account which is one of the reasons why the TMC lost the state.

[00:09:05]>> Yes, there are there are many reasons for this defeat.

[00:09:08]This can be one of those reasons. But as I was not the candidate, not I claim to be a candidate and for a long period of time I was suspended from the party for speaking the truth regarding RG core.

[00:09:20]So naturally for that particular period of time I could not I was not able to get involved on this internal political scenarios. So I must not comment on this, but yes of course there are so many reasons and of course this this can be one of the most important reasons for this miserable defeat.

[00:09:39]>> Dr. Sen, do you expect anything to change post this? Now that you've raised this alarm, many others are within the TMC have also raised certain concerns.

[00:09:46]Do you think things will change now for the party?

[00:09:52]>> I don't know, but I am hopeful that the new government will take the lead lead role to bring a change in the entire health sector.

[00:09:59]And I believe the way our newly elected honorable chief minister Mr. Shuvendu Adhikari ji, the way he has started functioning the way he has opened all these RG Kar file and Kamduni file.

[00:10:12]Is that justice for our is the demand across not only across West Bengal, not only across India, across the whole world.

[00:10:19]So, if real justice takes place, and yes, I strongly say once again, because I am associated with RG Kar since 1990.

[00:10:28]I was a student of RG Kar, post-graduate, graduate. My wife was a student of RG Kar, post-graduate, graduate. My daughter was born in RG Kar. My daughter studied in RG Kar, and she is doing house job even till date in RG Kar. I did my politics in RG Kar. So, every brick and every brick and stone is saying that it is not only the Sanjay Rai who was the sole culprit.

[00:10:52]Everyone believes that a huge nexus was there.

[00:10:56]If proper investigation takes place, I don't know how far it is possible because due to the vandalism that took place on 14th of August night purposefully.

[00:11:05]I don't know whether the evidences are still there or not. But even after that, if proper investigation takes place, I believe the entire nexus is will come out, and the entire incident will become will be will be will be in front of all of us.

[00:11:22]>> Dr. Sen, one last question before I let you go. You've just resigned from the post of the national spokesperson because you say you can't defend what the party has done or has has doing. But uh are questions also being raised about uh you or other colleagues like you who have been making these comments will be quitting the party. Can you give us some sense about what your next step would look like?

[00:11:45]>> On 3rd of May, could you predict what will happen on 4th of May?

[00:11:50]>> Mhm.

[00:11:51]>> So, nothing is absolutely in our hand.

[00:11:53]I believe in God. God will show my path.

[00:11:56]And my my submission to you is I am a doctor by profession and politics is my passion.

[00:12:03]>> Mhm.

[00:12:03]>> So, neither I am going to leave my profession, nor I am going to leave my passion.

[00:12:07]>> Mhm.

[00:12:08]Well, we'll leave it at that, Dr. Shantanu Sen. Thank you so much for speaking with us. You're on CNN News 18.