Senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sovan Chatterjee resigned from the post of the mayor of Kolkata Thursday on the directions of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Chatterjee, who was also the housing and fire services minister, had resigned from the cabinet Tuesday evening.
Banerjee has ruled out any crisis in the government following Chatterjee's resignation.
He sent his resignation letter through a messenger to Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) Chairperson Mala Roy on Thursday.
Roy, accepted the resignation letter and held a high-level meeting at her office later.
"Received Mr Sovan Chatterjee's resignation from the post of mayor through his messenger. I have accepted it. The other formalities will be followed as per rules, after a Trinamool Congress councillors' meeting convened by party supremo Mamata Banerjee is held this evening," Roy said.
Chatterjee also told newsmen that he was ready to quit as KMC councillor and also as an MLA of the TMC if the party wanted him to.
"It depends on the decision and direction of the party supremo," he said, adding that he continued to be a "loyal soldier" of the party and his "complete loyalty" is to party supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
"If my party wants, I will quit as councillor to enable someone else to get elected. If needed I can also quit as MLA. However, I don't know if my party will take my suggestion," Chatterjee said.
Expressing his gratitude to Banerjee for keeping faith in him and grooming him as a politician, he said he would extend all support and cooperation.
"Since yesterday was a holiday, I had to wait till office reopens. Today, I sent my resignation letter through my representative for the acceptance by KMC chairperson Mala Roy. On Tuesday, I had resigned from the post of minister," Chatterjee said.
Without replying to a question about the causes behind the chief minister's direction for his resignation, Chatterjee said "I don't know the reasons".
To a question about an alleged setback in his personal life, Chatterjee said, "Some people are intentionally spreading nuisance."
KMC Commissioner Khalil Ahmed has been asked to look after the operations of the civic body till a new mayor was appointed.
Chatterjee's resignation from the ministry has been forwarded to Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi, the chief minister said.
Earlier this year, he had been removed from the post of the environment minister by the chief minister.
"There is no crisis at all. One can always resign and there are provisions. There is no misunderstanding either. Someone can have personal problems," Banerjee said while speaking during the discussion on Kolkata Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018.
The amendment would enable a person, who is not an elected councillor, to be made the mayor of a corporation but he or she would have to be elected within six months to continue in the post.
"Even in your party, M J Akbar had resigned (from the post of the minister of state for external affairs). In our party, all the 122 councillors of KMC have the capability of taking up the post of mayor," she said in response to questions by BJP MLA and the party state unit president Dilip Ghosh.
"Why is Amit Shah your party president? Is there no other capable person in your party," she asked.
Stating that the person who will be the next mayor was a councillor previously and is currently a public representative, Banerjee said the final call will be taken by the party.
The rift between Banerjee and Chatterjee, who was once considered her trusted aide, had started growing after reports of problems in his conjugal life hit the headlines.
There were also allegations that Chatterjee was not taking his responsibilities seriously, neither as a mayor nor as a minister.
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