Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she would take care of the Trinamul Congress’s state of affairs in Birbhum and urban development minister Frihad Hakim would assist her as an emissary in the absence of the party’s strongman Anubrata Mondal.

The CBI had arrested Mondal in a cattle smuggling case around six months ago and he has been in jail since then.

“I will take care of the party’s organisation in Birbhum. Bobby (Firhad Hakim) will assist me. There is no problem for the party (organisation) in the absence of Kesto (as Mondal is fondly known),” a leader quoted Mamata as saying at a meeting with 70-odd party leaders from across the district.

Mamata on Monday evening met Trinamul leaders from 19 blocks and six towns of the district and took stock of the political situation in each of the areas. She pointed out how party leaders would have to work before panchayat polls.

“We all were introduced one by one to her. She took stock of the situation in our areas. It was the first time when she interacted directly with every block-level leader,” said a leader present in the meeting.

Though Trinamul officially said the meeting was actually a get-together, leaders who attended the meeting agreed that Mamata’s meeting was a need during a time of the party’s headless situation after Mondal’s arrest.

“Didi’s meeting was a morale-booster for us as it was of utmost importance as dejection had begun setting in the local leadership since Kestoda’s arrest,” said a leader.

Trinamul insiders said Mamata was very keen about the party’s organisation in Birbhum in the absence of Mondal, who always ensured most of the seats for the party in every election including the 2018 panchayat polls when around 80 per cent of total seats were won uncontested by the ruling party. Though Opposition parties accused Mondal of using violence as a weapon to win a large number of seats uncontested, Trinamul could not deny his organisational ability.

A Trinamul leader said it had also been noticed that some local leaders were aspiring to achieve greater control of certain areas quickly in Mondal’s absence. Mondal was arrested by the CBI on August 11 last year and remains lodged in Asansol jail.

“She is certainly aware of the happenings in the party in the absence of Anubrata Mondal. So, she included three more leaders, including a known anti-Anubrata face Sheikh Kajal, in the party’s core committee in the Birbhum district,” said a source.

After the arrest of Mondal, Trinamul formed a four-member core committee headed by Suri MLA and Birbhum Zilla parishad chief Bikash Roy Chowdhury.

The other members were Labhpur MLA Abhijit Sinha, Rampurhat MLA and deputy Speaker of the Assembly Ashis Banerjee, and Bolpur MLA and minister Chandranath Sinha.

Mamata on Monday included three more leaders —Sheikh Kajal from Nannor, Birbhum MP Satabdi Royand Bolpur MP Asit Mal —and directed them to work together.

Kajal is the brother of the party’s Ketugram MLA Sheikh Shahnwaz and the most prominent face against Mondal. Birbhum MP Roy is also not known to be Mondal’sfollower.

“She does not want the party to lose seats in Birbhum because of factional fights. The inclusion of these leaders indicates how she wants to run the party in the district with the help of all groups,” said a source.

Keeping the party’s organisational strength intact is not only important to ensure the maximum number of seats in the forthcoming elections, but it is cardinal for Mamata because of the Deocha-Pachami coalmine project.