Trinamool Congress faces split after Ritabrata Banerjee named Opposition Leader

KOLKATA: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal appears to be heading towards a major split after the Assembly Speaker recognised Ritabrata Banerjee, who was expelled from the party by Mamata Banerjee, as the Leader of the Opposition. Ritabrata Banerjee had approached Speaker Rathindra Bose with a letter signed by 59 MLAs supporting his claim to the post. Following this, the Speaker officially appointed him as the Opposition Leader, bypassing the Mamata Banerjee faction. A letter submitted by Abhishek Banerjee requesting that Sovandeb Chattopadhyay be recognised as the Opposition Leader was not considered by the Speaker.

Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha had earlier been expelled from the Trinamool Congress on charges of anti-party activities. However, the rebel group claims to have the support of more than two-thirds of the party's 80 MLAs. With such support, the rebels may be protected from disqualification under the anti-defection law. This could also strengthen their claim to the party's official election symbol in the future.

Reports suggest that only 20 MLAs had attended a meeting called by Mamata Banerjee at her residence last Sunday. At the same time, reports indicated that the rebel camp had already secured the backing of around 30 MLAs. Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress leadership issued a statement announcing the dissolution of all state-level party committees, including affiliated and support organisations. The party said that a reorganisation process would begin soon.