TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on Thursday asked defectors planning to leave the organization to do so before the Martyrs’ Day march on July 21, stressing that such exits would not weaken the party.
In a Facebook Live session, hours after TMC Rajya Sabha MP Rukmini Mallick, also known as Koel Mallick, resigned and met Union Minister Bhupinder Yadav, Banerjee said the actress-turned-politician had informed the party leadership of her decision via email before tendering her resignation.
“Today I saw another MP, who is also a respected and talented film artiste, met a BJP leader and resigned. I respect her as an artiste. For everyone’s information, she had already sent her resignation via email, and I thank her for submitting it in person today,” Banerjee said.
She said there may be others still planning to withdraw from the military junta under external pressure.
“Those who are under pressure from the BJP and the police, or due to cases before the court, the ED, the CBI, the CID, the local police officers, or the special task force, I request you to make your decision before July 21. If you think you can survive only by bowing to such pressure, please go wherever you want, even if it means joining the BJP. But do not discredit the party we have built together. You have every right to exercise these freedoms. But let me “I assure you that we will not be weakened by this.” Banerjee added.
Banerjee said there are people who can handle the pressure and those who cannot.
“Those who leave us also communicate with us secretly,” she added.
Mallick’s resignation came in the wake of three former TMC MPs – Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Sushmita Dev and Prakash Shek Barak – who defected to the BJP and got Rajya Sabha tickets by poll for the vacant seats.
Besides the Rajya Sabha, the party’s strength in the Lok Sabha also shrunk significantly after 20 rebel MPs – most of them like Sudeep Bandyopadhyay and Kakkali Ghosh Dastidar who were associated with Banerjee for long – broke away from the TMC to merge with the lesser-known Nationalist Citizens’ Party of India (NCPI) and pledged support to the BJP-led NDA.
Closer to home, the party faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has escalated the battle for Trinamul’s identity by consolidating rebel ranks, recruiting senior leaders, and pressing its claim as the party’s legitimate leadership.
The increasing desertions, which include senior leaders and former Mamata loyalists such as Farhad Hakim, Arup Biswas and most recently Madan Mitra, have increased pressure on the Banerjee-led Kalighat Trinamool, turning internal division into a direct political challenge.
Banerjee claimed that the families of the July 21 martyrs were receiving phone calls from the police asking them not to attend the rally organized by the TMC faction she leads, but to stand by the BJP.
“They are encouraged to support what I call the BJP-sponsored ‘pillow’ camp, where they will allegedly be rewarded with money and gifts,” she said, apparently referring to the faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee in the state.
She explained that she has honored the families of the martyrs every year for the past four decades, and claimed that they were forced to join the rebels this year “out of fear or financial temptation.”
“Remember, you have stood with us for 40 years. Times have changed temporarily. Fear is temporary. Terrorism is temporary. Money is temporary. Agency pressure is temporary. We do not misunderstand you – we know you are under tremendous pressure. Whether you stand with us this year or not, you will always remain in our hearts,” she said.
“I appeal to the administration to remain neutral. Remember, life is long. If Delhi starts shaking, the situation here will also change,” she added.
Banerjee said July 21 would mark a “new beginning” for her party with those who chose to remain in the country.
“If we can start over in 1997, we can definitely do it again in 2026,” she said. “There have been many conspiracies, and some people say they will erase our name and symbol. Let them try. Stay healthy, stay safe, and protect yourselves.”
The TMC chief criticized the Center for not reaching out to reform activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is currently on a hunger strike for 19 days to demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG medical entrance examination question paper leak.
“Even after Sonam’s prolonged hunger strike, no government official has met him. What’s wrong with speaking up? Someone’s life is in danger, and yet you are unwilling to show even the simplest courtesy. He sits under the open sky during the monsoon, with thunder, lightning and rain above, while the administration continues to intimidate him. This policy of fear and intimidation must end,” she said.
