Trinamool Congress fractures as rival factions claim party leadership

A full-scale institutional crisis has gripped the Trinamool Congress, as rebel legislators unilaterally appointed Arup Roy as party chairperson while Mamata Banerjee simultaneously asserted her authority by submitting an official list of office bearers to the Election Commission, setting the stage for a legal battle over the party’s identity.

Editorial·June 23, 2026·reads: 3,404

$Trinamool Congress fractures as rival factions claim party leadership$

The schism deepened on Monday when Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee announced that 58 of the party’s 80 MLAs had revolted, forming a breakaway faction. This group held a special session to elect Roy and install a 30-member National Working Committee, explicitly inviting Banerjee to step aside into a mentor role. The rebellion marks a direct challenge to the established hierarchy, with the dissidents moving quickly to seize control of party machinery and district committees.

Banerjee has responded by formalizing her grip on the party’s legal standing, filing documentation with the Election Commission that confirms her position as chairperson alongside key loyalists, including Abhishek Banerjee as National General Secretary and Subrata Bakshi as Vice President. Her camp has countered the insurrection with disciplinary force, issuing show-cause notices to prominent rebel figures such as Firhad Hakim and Aroop Biswas for anti-party activities. With the control of party funds and the official election symbol now in dispute, the confrontation between the two factions has escalated into a fight for the legal recognition of the "real" Trinamool Congress.