TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee meets Election Commission in Delhi

Ritabrata Banerjee led a delegation of roughly 60 TMC legislators to the Election Commission of India in Delhi, demanding official acknowledgment as the true Trinamool Congress leadership. The team, comprising Akhruzzaman, Arup Roy, Chandrima Bhattacharya and Riju Datta, reflects a split that emerged after the party’s defeat to the BJP in the April Assembly polls, with many MLAs distancing themselves from former chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

Both factions have filed petitions with the commission, each claiming to represent the authentic party. The commission’s hearing occurs before the September 16 cut-off for filing nominations for the upcoming Nandigram and Rejinagar by-polls, which will be held on October 6 and counted on October 9. These by-elections were triggered by the resignations of Humayun Kabir and Suvendu Adhikari, respectively, and the entire electoral process is slated to finish by October 11.