The rebel faction of the Trinamool Congress, led by Opposition Leader Ritabrata Banerjee, on Monday took its biggest organizational move yet against the party’s entrenched leadership. They elected senior MLA Arup Roy as president and announced a new batch of office bearers in a special session in Kolkata.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Banerjee said that former minister Arup Biswas, Farhad Hakim, Rathin Ghosh and Sabina Yasmin have been appointed as vice presidents of the faction. He also said that the procedures for the special session will be sent to the Election Commission.
“It is not a question of whether we are genuine or not. We are TMC and will inform the EC about the proceedings of today’s special session,” Banerjee said, according to PTI.
He added that if former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wants to join the new leadership structure, she is “very welcome” to serve as the faction’s chief advisor.
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The rebels talk about a “constitutional crisis”
The meeting, which was held at a five-star hotel in New Town, was attended by rebel local councillors, councilors and former elected representatives from several areas. Organizers described it as a special session to address what they called the “constitutional crisis” within the party.
According to Banerjee, the party’s constitution stipulates the formation of a national working committee every three years, and the last committee was formed in February 2022. The rebel camp said that the organizational structure was not renewed after the expiration of its term.
The session initially formed a national working committee which initially included Arup Roy, Farhad Hakim, Arup Biswas, Biplab Mitra, Akhiruzzaman Ansari, Sabina Yasmin, Sandipan Saha, Rathin Ghosh, Javed Khan and Ritabrata Banerjee before it was expanded to 30 members.
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Announcing new office holders
The committee then unanimously elected Roy, MLA from Howrah Central, as chairman. Besides the four vice-presidents, Ritabrata Banerjee, Javed Khan and Sandipan Saha have been appointed general secretaries, while Akhiruzzaman Ansari has been appointed treasurer. The faction also decided to appoint an auditor to review the party’s finances.
Pictures of Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore and BR Ambedkar were displayed on the stage. Absent from the scene were pictures of party founder Mamata Banerjee and senior leader Abhishek Banerjee, both of whom have long been the dominant face of the party.
TMC crisis after election defeat
This organizational practice comes amid a split within the TMC following the party’s defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Just days ago, a majority of TMC MLAs supported Ritabrata Banerjee’s claim to the post of Leader of Opposition, rejecting the choice favored by the Mamata Banerjee-led leadership. The rebel camp has since announced that its strength in the Assembly has risen to about 65 legislators.
The crisis also extended to Parliament. Recently, a large group of TMC Lok Sabha MPs broke away from the party’s parliamentary wing and joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), while extending support to the BJP-led NDA.
(with PTI inputs)
