TMC splits: Rebel faction removes Mamata Banerjee as President, suspends Abhishek

KOLKATA: In a major political upheaval in West Bengal, the rebel faction of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has removed party founder Mamata Banerjee from the post of party president, naming Arup Roy as her successor.

The dissident group, led by Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, announced that it will formally approach the Election Commission of India to notify the regulatory body of the leadership change. In a swift follow-up move, the rebel faction also announced the suspension of the party's national general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee.

The decisions were finalised during a meeting of dissident legislators and organisational leaders, where a new National Working Committee was constituted. Justifying the intervention, Ritabrata Banerjee stated that the faction was forced to act because the tenure of the previous committee—formed in February 2022—had expired without any initiative from the top leadership to restructure it.

Under the newly configured setup, Arup Roy takes over as national president, while Firhad Hakim, Arup Biswas, Rathin Ghosh, and Sabina Yasmin have been appointed as vice-chairpersons. Ritabrata Banerjee, Javed Khan, and Sandipan Saha will assume the roles of general secretaries. The rebel camp has claimed legitimacy as the "real" Trinamool Congress, asserting the active support of approximately 60 MLAs.

The internal fractures within the party spilled into the public eye after a majority of TMC lawmakers rejected a legislative leader proposed by Mamata Banerjee, voting instead to elect Ritabrata Banerjee as the Leader of the Opposition.

The crisis has also severely impacted the party's strength at the national level. Following the rebellion in the state assembly, 20 TMC members of the Lok Sabha broke away from the parent party to merge with the Nationalist Citizens Party, subsequently declaring their support for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).