Trinamul’s Contai MP Sisir Adhikari was on Wednesday replaced as East Midnapore’s district party president with Pingla MLA and minister Soumen Mahapatra, the move coming a day after he had been divested of the post of the chairperson of the Digha-Sankarpur Development Authority.

Sisir’s son Suvendu Adhikari had joined the BJP in January last year.

“The party has done what it thinks best, but perhaps they could have asked me about my version first. The chief minister has not reached out to me even once amid all this,” said Sisir, who was recovering from a cataract operation.

Sources said the decision was taken by the party’s top brass and meant to send a message to the Adhikari clan.

Suvendu petition

BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday filed a petition before Calcutta High Court, pleading that the state government be ordered to provide more security personnel for him during his meetings and road shows across the state.

According to high court sources, the petition would be taken up in a couple of days.

In his petition, Suvendu claimed that he had been receiving threats to his life regularly from unknown people. The Trinamul turncoat apprehended that he might be attacked by the “goons of a particular political party”.

“Though I have been receiving protection from the central government, but for holding meetings and rallies inside West Bengal more state police protection is needed,” Suvendu’s petition reads.

Contacted, a state government lawyer said: “We are yet to get a copy of the petition. The state will inform the court whatever it has to.”

Suvendu has recently been shown black flags by Trinamul Congress workers while on his way to rallies.