Both TMC factions get new names, symbols
What's the story
The Election Commission has allotted new names and symbols to two rival factions of the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The Mamata Banerjee-led faction has been allotted the name 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and the symbol 'Football Player.' It will be treated as a recognized political party in West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura.
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Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress allotted the name 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and the symbol 'Football Player', to be treated as a recognized political party in the States of West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura
— ANI (@ANI) September 18, 2026
The group led by Arup Roy is allotted the name… pic.twitter.com/1VECH6MoUK
Dispute resolution
Decision comes amid Trinamool Congress identity crisis
Meanwhile, the Arup Roy-led faction has been named 'Democratic Trinamool Congress' and given an 'envelope' as its election symbol.
The decision comes after a dispute over the identity of the political party ahead of by-elections in West Bengal's Rejinagar and Nandigram Assembly constituencies, as well as Assam's Nagaon parliamentary constituency.
The Election Commission on Thursday night froze the use of "All India Trinamool Congress" and its reserved "Flowers & Grass" symbol for both factions.
Nomination filed
Candidates from both factions file nominations
The ECI said the allocation was necessary because candidates from both factions had already filed nominations claiming to represent the All India Trinamool Congress.
In Rejinagar, Safiuzzaman Saikh filed his nomination with a Form-B authorized by Arup Roy, while Rabiul Alam Chowdhury did so with a Form-B authorized by Mamata Banerjee.
In Nandigram, Ehteshmul Haque submitted his nomination with a Form-B authorized by Roy and Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) did so with one authorized by Mamata.
Split
Rebellion in TMC
The split in the party emerged after the state Assembly elections.
Ritabrata, a first-time MLA expelled from the TMC, led this rebellion.
In June, he garnered support from around 60 of the party's 80 MLAs in the West Bengal Assembly, after which the Assembly Speaker recognized him as the Leader of the Opposition.
Factions
Faction claimed to have removed Mamata as chair
The rebel faction sought changes in the party's functioning and opposed Abhishek Banerjee's role as TMC general secretary but maintained that Mamata Banerjee remained their overall leader.
Ritabrata said there were no initial plans to break away from the TMC.
But by late June, the Ritabrata-led faction claimed to have removed Mamata as TMC chairperson and appointed MLA Arup Roy as chairperson of what it called the "real TMC."