West Bengal: Why Rebel TMC MPs Chose an Obscure Party Instead of Claiming the Trinamool or Joining the BJP

By Ajay Haldar

Kolkata, June 15: After the Trinamool Congress (TMC) suffered a major setback in the recent West Bengal Assembly elections, former Chief Minister and party supremo Mamata Banerjee is facing growing dissent from within her ranks, both in the state Assembly and in Parliament. The scale of the rebellion has raised questions on the very existence of the party.

However, the two rebellions have taken markedly different paths.

While rebel TMC MLAs led by Ritabrata Bandyopadhyay have continued to claim the Trinamool identity and now occupy the Opposition benches in the Assembly, a group of rebel Lok Sabha MPs led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar has chosen a different route. Rather than presenting themselves as the "real Trinamool", they have decided to merge with the relatively unknown Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).

The decision has prompted a key question: Why did the MPs choose to join an obscure party instead of attempting to take control of the Trinamool Congress or directly joining the BJP?

Legal experts and political observers point to four key reasons.

1. Avoiding Legal Complications

The Lok Sabha rebels appear to have learnt from the legal troubles faced by their counterparts in the Assembly.

The rebellion among TMC MLAs became visible earlier when a majority of legislators defied the party leadership and elected Ritabrata Bandyopadhyay as their legislative party leader. Ritabrata currently serves as Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly despite having been expelled from the party.

The Trinamool Congress has challenged this arrangement in court, arguing that an expelled member cannot serve as Leader of the Opposition. The matter remains pending before the High Court.

According to veteran CPI(M) leader Rabin Deb, who has extensive knowledge of electoral law, the Lok Sabha rebels sought to avoid a similar legal battle.

"Perhaps that is why, after consulting political strategists, the rebels chose to merge with another party rather than claim to be the 'real' Trinamool," Deb observed.

2. BJP's Strategic Interest

Political observers widely believe that the BJP has played a significant role in facilitating the split.

The first meeting of the rebel MPs reportedly took place at the residence of Union Minister Bhupender Yadav. Several subsequent meetings were also held there, with BJP MP Nishikant Dubey participating in some discussions.

However, the BJP has shown little enthusiasm for formally inducting all the rebel MPs into the party.

Senior advocate and CPI(M) leader Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya argues that the BJP's immediate objective is not expansion of party membership but parliamentary arithmetic.

"The BJP's goal is to secure support from a substantial section of Trinamool MPs on key legislations. Instead of taking unnecessary risks, it facilitated a split and helped the breakaway faction merge with another party," Bhattacharya said.

3. Taking Control of the Trinamool Is Extremely Difficult

Even if the rebels can secure control over the parliamentary wing of the party, gaining control of the Trinamool Congress itself is another matter entirely.

Sensing growing unrest, Mamata Banerjee reportedly dissolved several organizational committees and replaced office-bearers with leaders loyal to her.

This is significant because the Trinamool Congress is structured around its Chairperson. The party constitution, submitted to the Election Commission, vests substantial authority in organizational bodies rather than elected representatives.

Originally, the State Executive Committee was designated as the party's highest authority. Subsequent amendments elevated the National Working Committee to that position. Both structures remain heavily centered around the party leadership.

As BJP spokesperson and senior advocate Swapan Das points out, control over the party's name, election symbol, and finances remains with the organizational leadership, not elected MPs or MLAs.

Since those organizational leaders continue to support Mamata Banerjee, the rebels would face significant hurdles if they approached either the Election Commission or the courts seeking recognition as the legitimate Trinamool Congress.

TMC MP and advocate Kalyan Banerjee echoed this view.

"No one can simply claim ownership of the party. The Constitution of the party exists for a reason. They cannot call themselves Trinamool," he said.

4. The Anti-Defection Risk if TMC Merges with Congress

Another factor may be the possibility—however remote—of a future merger between the Trinamool Congress and the Congress party.

Recent meetings between members of the Gandhi family, Mamata Banerjee, and Abhishek Banerjee triggered speculation about such a merger, although Congress leaders later dismissed the reports.

Had such a merger occurred before the rebel MPs formally reorganized themselves, they could have faced complications under the anti-defection law.

Currently, the Trinamool parliamentary party has 28 MPs. To qualify as a lawful split under existing provisions, at least two-thirds of the parliamentary party would need to support the move, a threshold the rebels reportedly satisfy.

According to Swapan Das, a merger of Trinamool with Congress would significantly alter those calculations.

Congress currently has 98 MPs in the Lok Sabha. If TMC's 28 MPs were added to that tally, the combined parliamentary strength would reach 126, raising the threshold required for any future split.

This, Das argues, may explain why the rebels acted quickly and reportedly informed the Speaker in advance.

An Unknown Party Suddenly in the Spotlight

News of the impending split emerged shortly after around 20 TMC MPs, including Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Satabdi Roy, and Saayoni Ghosh, openly rebelled against the party leadership.

Within days, they announced their decision to join the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), a party virtually unknown in national politics. The anti-defection law creates an exception in case 2/3 members of a legislature party merges with another party.

Election Commission records show that the NCPI was registered in 2023 as a Registered Unrecognized Political Party (RUPP). The party contested two seats in the 2023 Tripura Assembly elections—Kailasahar and Chaumanu—but failed to win either constituency.

Its candidates secured only 286 and 536 votes respectively.

Despite its limited electoral presence, the NCPI has now become central to one of the most significant political developments facing the Trinamool Congress since its formation.

Whether the move strengthens the rebels' position or merely postpones a larger political confrontation with Mamata Banerjee remains to be seen.