TMC rift deepens: Rebel faction locks Kolkata party office, stakes claim over symbol and funds

The battle between the two factions of Trinamool Congress intensified on Friday with two factions locking horns over Trinamool Bhawan, the Kolkata based party office of Trinamool Congress.

On Friday evening, major chaos erupted as the Ritabrata-led rebel group of Trinamool Congress took charge of the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Bhawan office, held meetings there and locked the office.

Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool, led by party MLA spokesperson Kunal Ghosh and Madan Mitra, along with other leaders, rushed to the Trinamool Bhawan and expressed disgruntlement.


Ghosh said they are looking into the matter and said the Trinamool MLAs, who had come to the party office (Firhad Hakim, Sandipan Saha and Ritabrata Banerjee) have also won with the Trinamool tickets and became MLAs under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership.

"We need to see why they have come. It is not known to us. You (rebels) are creating a state committee and also locking Trinamool Bhawan. This is unacceptable that someone will come and lock the Trinamool Bhawan. The police have been deployed there,” Ghosh said.

Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the West Bengal Assembly Ritabrata Banerjee led rebel faction of Trinamool have majority of MLAs by their side with around 64 MLAs. Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool which has turned into a minority faction.

Ritabrata Banerjee led a 10-member delegation of the dissident faction of the Trinamool Congress to meet the ECI in New Delhi on Thursday and staked his faction’s claim for TMC’s twin-flower symbol and ownership of party funds.

Banerjee led delegation met CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the ECI bench gave them a patient hearing and assured them that they would be updated soon.

A simmering divide erupted within the party over the twin-flower symbol and ownership of the party funds and both rival factions moving the poll panel. The fissures have arisen following a rout in the recent assembly elections which has brought the BJP to power in the state for the first time.