Mamata back as TMC supremo? After rebels ‘replace’ her, Didi’s faction hits back with fresh leadership list

The internal crisis in the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has intensified, with a rebel faction of the party reportedly challenging founder Mamata Banerjee’s leadership by “replacing” her as chairperson and electing senior MLA Arup Roy to the post.

The development comes amid growing turmoil within the party after its defeat in the recently concluded West Bengal Assembly elections against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Mamata Banerjee’s camp has moved to counter the emergence of a parallel leadership structure by submitting a fresh list of office-bearers and members of the national working committee to the Election Commission (EC), asserting that she remains the official head of the party.

Rebel faction claims support from majority of MLAs

According to sources in the rebel camp, around 60 of the TMC’s 80 MLAs either attended or backed a special session where Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee announced a new national leadership structure, PTI reported.

The meeting, held at a Kolkata hotel, lasted 31 minutes and saw participation from rebel legislators, former Kolkata Municipal Corporation councillors and party representatives from several districts.

The rebel group also claimed that nearly 70 former councillors and several grassroots leaders supported the move.

TMC disciplinary committee takes action

Meanwhile, the TMC disciplinary committee issued show-cause notices to several senior leaders, including Firhad Hakim, Aroop Biswas, Arup Roy, Javed Khan, Rathin Ghosh, Biplab Mitra, Snehasis Chakraborty and Sabina Yasmin.

The party alleged that these leaders were involved in activities against the organisation’s interests.

How the TMC crisis began

The leadership battle reportedly began earlier this month after West Bengal Assembly Speaker Rathindra Nath Bose recognised 58 rebel TMC legislators as the principal opposition group in the House on June 3.

Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha, who were expelled by the Mamata-led TMC on June 1, were named Leader of Opposition and Deputy Leader of Opposition respectively.

The development came 29 days after the BJP emerged victorious with 207 seats, while the TMC was reduced to 80 seats in the Assembly.

Soon after, another rebel group involving 20 TMC MPs reportedly emerged, further increasing pressure on Mamata Banerjee. Several senior leaders were said to have distanced themselves from her camp, leaving only a few prominent figures, including Mahua Moitra, Kalyan Banerjee and Derek O’Brien, supporting her.

Rebel MPs push merger proposal

A separate faction of TMC MPs, led by Kakoli Ghosh and including leaders such as Saayoni Ghosh, Yusuf Pathan and Rachna Banerjee, reportedly proposed a merger with the Tripura-based Nationalist Congress Party of India (NCPI) to support the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Parliament.

If approved by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, the move could increase the NDA’s strength in the Lok Sabha from 294 to 314 seats, though it would still remain short of the two-thirds majority required for certain constitutional decisions.

In the Rajya Sabha, the alliance could reportedly reach 155 seats, still eight short of the two-thirds threshold.

Mamata camp submits leadership list to EC

Amid competing claims, the Mamata Banerjee faction submitted a list of the party’s organisational structure “as on June 20, 2026” to the Election Commission.

The list reaffirmed Mamata Banerjee as chairperson of the All India Trinamool Congress.

It named Subrata Bakshi as vice-president and Abhishek Banerjee as national general secretary (Lok Sabha leader). Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen were listed as joint secretaries, while Subhasish Chakraborty was named treasurer.

The national working committee includes Mamata Banerjee, Subrata Bakshi, Abhishek Banerjee, Derek O’Brien, Dola Sen and Subhasish Chakraborty, along with several other senior leaders.

Chandrima Bhattacharya was listed as a member of the national working committee and West Bengal TMC president, while Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay was named a committee member and Leader of the West Bengal Assembly.

With both factions now claiming authority over the party structure, the TMC faces its biggest internal challenge since its formation, putting Mamata Banerjee’s control over the organisation under intense pressure.