EC bars both TMC factions from using party name, symbol in West Bengal bypolls

The Election Commission has frozen the Trinamool Congress' name and 'Flowers & Grass' symbol for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly bypolls. Both factions have been asked to submit three choices each for new party names and free symbols by September 18.Both factions will also be allotted separate symbols from the list of free symbols notified by the Election Commission for the current bypolls. (File Photo: ITG)The Election Commission on Thursday barred both rival factions of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) from using the party’s name and its “Flowers & Grass” election symbol in the upcoming West Bengal Assembly bypolls.The order escalates a months-long internal dispute that began with a rebellion against Mamata Banerjee’s leadership in June.In an interim order, the poll panel froze the name All India Trinamool Congress and the symbol reserved for the party. Neither the faction led by Mamata Banerjee nor the rival group headed by Ritabrata Banerjee will be allowed to use the TMC name or its traditional symbol until further orders.The Commission has directed both factions to submit three choices for a new party name and three choices from the list of free election symbols by 11 am on September 18. Both groups will be allotted separate names and symbols for the upcoming bypolls. The Commission has also said the factions may, if they wish, retain a reference to their parent party, “All India Trinamool Congress”, in the names they propose.HOW THE TMC SPLIT BEGANThe current dispute traces its roots to the TMC’s electoral defeat in the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, after which an open rebellion erupted inside the party. Ritabrata Banerjee, a first-time MLA who was subsequently expelled by the TMC, emerged as the face of the rebellion. In early June, he secured the backing of around 60 of the party’s 80 MLAs in the state Assembly. The legislators backed his claim to lead the TMC legislature party and he was subsequently recognised as the Leader of the Opposition by the Assembly Speaker.At the time, the rebel legislators maintained that Mamata Banerjee remained their overall leader, while seeking changes in the party’s functioning and opposing the role and influence of her nephew and TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.Ritabrata also said the rebel camp did not initially intend to split from the TMC.The rebellion subsequently developed into a wider organisational challenge. By June 22, the Ritabrata-led faction claimed to have removed Mamata Banerjee as TMC chairperson and appointed senior MLA Arup Roy as chairperson of what it described as the “real TMC”. Mamata’s loyalists rejected the move and continued to recognise her as party chief.RIVAL FACTIONS STAKE CLAIM TO TMC IDENTITYThe dispute has since moved beyond leadership and organisational control to the party’s legal identity, including its name and election symbol.Both factions have submitted documents to the Election Commission claiming the right to represent the TMC. The contest has intensified ahead of the October 6 Assembly bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar, with both camps fielding candidates while seeking to contest under the established TMC identity.- EndsPublished By: Shipra ParasharPublished On: Sep 17, 2026 22:16 IST