Ritabrata Banerjee-led TMC rebel camp appoints Arup Roy as chairperson
What's the story
In a major upheaval in the Trinamool Congress (TMC), rebel MLAs on Monday appointed senior MLA Arup Roy as the chairperson of what they called the "real" TMC. The move directly challenges party founder Mamata Banerjee's leadership. The rebel faction, led by Ritabrata Banerjee, also suspended Abhishek Banerjee, the party's national general secretary, after unveiling a parallel organisational structure.
Support claimed
Rebel MLAs claim support of around 60 legislators
The rebel camp claimed to have the support of around 60 MLAs and several councilors, including from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. They held a meeting at a five-star hotel in New Town to discuss what they called a "constitutional crisis" in the party. Senior leaders like Firhad Hakim, Arup Biswas, and Javed Khan were reportedly present at this meeting.
Committee formation
Ritabrata stresses on reconstituting national working committee
During the meeting, Ritabrata Banerjee stressed reconstituting the national working committee as per the party constitution. He argued that the party constitution requires the constitution of a national working committee every three years and that the previous committee, formed in February 2022, had completed its tenure without being reconstituted. A new national working committee was then formed with members like Arup Roy and Firhad Hakim.
Leadership change
New committee elected by voice vote
Arup Roy was then elected chairperson of the new committee by voice vote. Firhad Hakim, Aroop Biswas, Rathin Ghosh, and Sabina Yasmin were made vice-chairpersons. Ritabrata Banerjee, Javed Khan, and Sandipan Saha were named general secretaries, while Akhruzzaman Ansari was appointed treasurer. The committee also decided to appoint an independent auditor to scrutinize the party's finances.
Dismissal
Official TMC leaders dismiss developments as comical show
Meanwhile, leaders loyal to Mamata Banerjee have dismissed the developments as a comical show. Kunal Ghosh of the official camp said on X, "It is a comedy show. A man who has been expelled from the TMC is holding a special session." He added that justice would be served in court and reiterated that "TMC = Mamata Banerjee. All else is a circus."
Crisis background
Split within TMC
The rebel TMC faction enjoys the support of 58 of the 80 party MLAs. The revolt even extends to Parliament, where a large block of TMC's Lok Sabha MPs met with Union Minister Bhupender Yadav. The dispute initially blew wide open regarding the Leader of the Opposition position, with suspended MLAs alleging that Abhishek Banerjee and party leadership forged their signatures on internal party documents.