Actress-turned-politician and Trinamool leader, Rukmini Mallick, widely known as Koel Mallick, has stepped down from her position in the Rajya Sabha, just three months after her election to the Upper House. This makes her the fourth Trinamool Congress member to resign from the Rajya Sabha following the party’s significant loss in the recent West Bengal elections.
The trend of resignations started with Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Sushmita Dev, and Prakash Chik Baraik leaving the Upper House one after another. All three have since joined the BJP and are now nominated as BJP candidates for the upcoming bypolls for the vacated seats. Speculations are now circulating that Mallick might follow the same path, especially after being seen at the residence of Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav right after submitting her resignation to the Rajya Sabha Chairperson.
Mallick had initially sent her resignation letter via email but had to appear in person to formalize it. She fulfilled this requirement by personally submitting her resignation letter to the Rajya Sabha Chairperson. When the Trinamool Congress announced the four candidates for the Rajya Sabha earlier this year, Mallick’s selection was a surprise. Despite being elected unopposed, she did not attend any Rajya Sabha sessions, focusing instead on campaigning in West Bengal.
Mallick comes from a family with a background in the Bengali film industry, with her father, Ranjit Mallick, being a renowned actor of his time.
