New Delhi:
Rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Satabdi Roy has blamed corruption, the growing influence of TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, and what she called former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s unwillingness to listen to party leaders for the existential crisis gripping the party following its defeat in the 2026 state assembly elections.
In an interview with Hindustan Times, excerpts of which will be published before the full interview on Sunday, Roy said corruption was the main reason behind public discontent with the party.
“There are hundreds of other cases, but the main thing is corruption,” Roy said.
Her statements come at a time when the Transitional Military Council is facing one of its biggest internal crises. Several members of parliament and senior leaders have resigned or joined the rebel camp, publicly expressing dissatisfaction and deep concerns about the future direction of the party.
Asked why Mamata Banerjee continued to win elections despite such issues, Roy said voters had time and again hoped that things would improve.
“Sometimes it’s also like ‘chalo iss baar toh theek ho jayega’ (Maybe things will get better this time). Even when you divorce your husband, you give him some time,” she added.
Roy used the metaphor of a “marital affair” to suggest that the problems plaguing the party had been accumulating for some time. “When there is an extramarital affair in a marriage, one cannot say that they were absolutely in love with each other. There was a void. Likewise, in this case, it was not as if people were not bored with the party and there were no problems where it would have been easy for a third person to step in and cause a divorce.”
Roy also questioned Abhishek Banerjee’s increasing role in party affairs. “If Mamata’s experience and Abhishek’s fresh and innovative ideas had come together, it could have been a very good combination. But unfortunately it did not happen. Mamata Banerjee handed over every decision to Abhishek Banerjee. I think this is a mistake as she is completely dependent on him,” she said.
Abhishek Banerjee is widely viewed as the party’s second most powerful leader and Mamata’s political heir. Rebels within the TMC oppose Abhishek, accusing him of an “arrogant” centralized leadership style, systematic alienation of the party’s old guard, and over-reliance on political consultants such as I-PAC in selecting candidates and making internal decisions.
Roy further claimed that Mamata’s leadership style has changed over the years. “Her mood changed. When I first joined, she was available to us. She was very likable to us. However, power changed her,” she said.
Roy said she was disappointed that the party leadership had made so little effort to understand why the leaders were leaving. “She didn’t want to discuss,” she said. “I expected her to ask why the leaders left.” In comparison with the Mahabharata character Dhritarashtra, she added, “If you don’t want to see anything, if you don’t want to hear anything, then you are Dhritarashtra.”
The TMC maintains that the party remains united under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, and rejects criticism from dissidents. Several leaders, including MPs Babul Supriyo and Shatrughan Sinha, have publicly expressed their support for Mamata amid the ongoing unrest.
