EC seeks final pleas in TMC name, symbol dispute

The poll panel has sought final submissions from the factions led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Leader of the Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee by 3 pm on September 16, the deadline for filing nominations for the October 6 bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar.

The commission has indicated that it might hold a further hearing on September 17, if required.

The development came a day after representatives of both camps appeared before the EC in New Delhi and presented their competing claims. The Commission subsequently sought responses from the Mamata camp to documents submitted by the Ritabrata faction.

The dispute has assumed significance because both groups claim to be the legitimate Trinamool Congress and want to retain the party’s name and its traditional symbol for the upcoming bypolls.

The Ritabrata faction has claimed the backing of a majority of the party’s newly elected MLAs and has sought control over the organisation, its assets and authorised signatories.

The dissident group emerged after the TMC’s defeat in the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections and has maintained that it represents the “real” TMC.

The Mamata camp, meanwhile, has challenged the rival faction’s claim and maintained that the party’s organisational structure and leadership remain governed by its constitution.

The EC had on September 9 called representatives of both sides for separate meetings on September 12. The Ritabrata faction was allotted an 11 am meeting, followed by the Mamata camp at noon.

The timing of the commission’s intervention is politically crucial.

Nandigram, where Mamata Banerjee had defeated Suvendu Adhikari in the 2021 Assembly election before losing the 2026 contest, and Rejinagar are among the first electoral battlegrounds where the rival TMC factions could face voters after the split.

The decision on the party name and symbol could therefore determine how the two camps contest the bypolls and whether either faction can use the established TMC identity.

With the nomination deadline just days away, the EC’s final call could have an immediate bearing on the electoral contest and potentially reshape the Opposition space in West Bengal.