A full-blown power struggle has erupted within the Trinamool Congress (TMC), with both the rebel faction and the camp led by former chief minister Mamata Banerjee staking claims over key organisational posts.
The official faction has submitted a list of office-bearers and National Working Committee members to the Election Commission (EC), asserting that Mamata Banerjee continues as the party chairperson.
According to the list reportedly submitted on June 20, Subrata Bakshi has been named vice-president, while Lok Sabha leader Abhishek Banerjee continues as national general secretary. Rajya Sabha MPs Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen have been named joint secretaries, and Subhasish Chakraborty serves as treasurer.
The TMC disciplinary committee has also issued show-cause notices to several senior leaders, including Aroop Biswas, Firhad Hakim, Arup Roy, Javed Khan, Rathin Ghosh, Biplab Mitra, Snehasis Chakraborty, and Sabina Yasmin, accusing them of engaging in anti-party activities.
Earlier, the rebel faction had released its own list announcing a parallel organisational structure, appointing Arup Roy as party chairperson. The move, which directly challenges the leadership of Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, has further escalated the internal crisis.
Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, who heads the rebel camp, said the move was necessitated by what he described as a “constitutional crisis” within the party. He argued that the tenure of the last National Working Committee, constituted in February 2022, had expired.
The rebel group, which convened a special session, also announced a new National Working Committee and appointed its own office-bearers.
The Mamata-led faction has rejected the exercise, maintaining that the dissidents had no authority to convene such a meeting or alter the party’s organisational structure. The official camp has announced its own National Working Committee, which includes Mamata Banerjee, Subrata Bakshi, Abhishek Banerjee, Derek O’Brien, Dola Sen, and Subhasish Chakraborty.
Other members of the committee include Chandrima Bhattacharya, Amit Mitra, Rajesh Pati Tripathi, Asima Patra, Moloy Ghatak, Gautam Deb, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, Bulu Chik Baraik, Mukul Sangma, Baiswanor Chattopadhyay, Birbaha Hansda, Kalyan Banerjee, Saugata Roy, Nadimul Haque, Madan Mitra, Biman Banerjee, Mahua Moitra, and Kunal Ghosh.
The internal crisis in the TMC, which has governed West Bengal for over a decade and a half, began after its recent electoral setback. At least 58 of the party’s 80 MLAs questioned Mamata Banerjee’s leadership and formed a separate bloc within the assembly.
The rebellion later extended to the party’s parliamentary wing, where 20 of 29 Lok Sabha MPs formed a separate faction and merged with a little-known outfit, the Nationalist Citizen Party of India (NCPI), in a move seen as an attempt to avoid legal complications.
