Riju Dutta, a suspended Trinamool Congress spokesperson, has apologized to Uttar Pradesh IPS officer Ajay Pal Sharma. Dutta's apology came after the Trinamool Congress lost the recent West Bengal assembly elections to the BJP. In his video statement, Dutta claimed that he was acting on the advice of senior BJP leaders and his legal counsel. He stated that his original remarks were not personal and that he was speaking as a national spokesman following party line.
Dutta had previously attacked Sharma on camera, calling him 'Yogi Adityanath's trigger-happy cowboy' and accusing him of fake encounters and corruption. However, after the election results, Dutta praised the BJP government's measures to control post-poll violence, which was seen as anti-party by the Trinamool Congress.
The Trinamool Congress disciplinary committee had issued show-cause notices to five spokespersons, including Dutta, for breach of party discipline. Dutta was subsequently suspended for six years along with two other spokesmen. The suspension has led to speculation that Dutta may be eyeing a future in the BJP.
