New Delhi: With internal divisions widening in the Trinamool Congress (TMC) after its defeat in the West Bengal Assembly election, the party has written to the Election Commission stating that Mamata Banerjee continues as its leader.
The development comes after a group of disgruntled MLAs claimed they had removed Mamata from the party president’s post and announced Arup Roy as the new leader. The same group also said Abhishek Banerjee would be replaced as general secretary by Rithabrata Banerjee.
According to the report, the rebel camp is led by expelled MLA Rithabrata Banerjee, with 60 of the party’s 80 MLAs said to be aligned with him. Separately, 20 Lok Sabha MPs are said to be functioning as a bloc under MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar.
In a letter dated June 20, the Mamata Banerjee camp informed the Election Commission that Mamata remains party president. The letter also listed key office-bearers, including vice-president Subrata Bakshi, general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, joint secretaries Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen, and treasurer Subhasish Chakravarty.
With both sides staking claim over the party’s leadership and control, attention is now on what steps the Election Commission may take.
