KOLKATA: With the Election Commission of India deciding to hold bypolls in two high-voltage Assembly constituencies, Nandigram in East Midnapore and Rejinagar in Murshidabad, on October 6, the bitter tussle between the two factions of the Trinamool Congress over the party’s identity, name and election symbol has come into sharper focus.
The bypolls, scheduled just days before the Durga Puja festival in the state, will see the two rival factions of the Trinamool Congress, led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and rebel leader Ritabrata Banerjee, the Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, fight against each other for the first time.
The development comes after the party suffered a crushing defeat to the BJP in the 2026 Assembly elections. Counting for both Nandigram and Rejinagar will take place on October 9, barely a couple of months before eight municipal bodies, including Kolkata and Howrah, are scheduled to go to polls in November-December.
The Nandigram seat fell vacant after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur, Mamata Banerjee’s home turf in the 2026 Assembly elections held in April, retained Bhabanipur and resigned from Nandigram.
In Murshidabad, Aam Janata Unnayan Party leader Humayun Kabir won both Rejinagar and Nawda. The former Trinamool Congress MLA retained Nawda but resigned from Rejinagar, necessitating the bypoll.
The Election Commission’s decision to hold the bypolls has raised questions over which faction of the Trinamool Congress will get the party’s original election symbol, which it has used since its formation in 1998.
The Ritabrata-led faction on Wednesday approached the ECI, seeking permission to contest the bypolls using the Trinamool Congress symbol.
The last date for filing nominations in both constituencies is September 16, while scrutiny will be held on September 17. The last date for withdrawal of nominations is September 19, according to the Commission’s notification.
The timing of the bypolls is significant for both factions of the Trinamool Congress, which has been grappling with an unprecedented internal crisis following its humiliating defeat in the Assembly elections.
Both sides have claimed to represent the ‘real’ Trinamool Congress and have approached Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi, seeking recognition as the legitimate leadership of the party.
The rebel group led by Ritabrata has claimed the support of more than 60 of the 80 MLAs elected in the Assembly polls.
The Mamata Banerjee-led faction, meanwhile, has submitted details of its National Working Committee to the Commission and maintained that it remains the legitimate leadership of the All India Trinamool Congress.
It remains unclear which faction will get the party’s election symbol for the two bypolls.
Akhrujjaman, the Assembly’s chief whip and a member of the Ritabrata-led faction, told the media on Wednesday that his group would field candidates in both constituencies with the party’s ‘flower and grass’ symbol. The names of the candidates will be announced on September 15, he said.
If the Commission does not allot the Trinamool Congress symbol to the faction, its candidates will contest the bypolls as independents, he added.
