In a significant political development on Sunday, 19 dissident MPs from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) announced their merger with the Nationalist Citizens Party and met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to request a separate seating arrangement in the House. This move marks an escalation in the rebellion within the TMC.
Meeting with the Speaker
The group of MPs, which includes cricketer-turned-politician Yusuf Pathan, Sudip Bandopadhyay, and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, submitted a formal letter to Speaker Om Birla seeking recognition as a distinct group. The request aims to secure a separate seating area in the Lok Sabha, reflecting their split from the parent party.
Claim of Majority Support
Speaking to the media after the meeting, rebel MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar asserted that two-thirds of the TMC's Lok Sabha members had signed the letter. “Two-thirds MPs of TMC have given a letter to the Speaker for a separate seating arrangement. We will merge with the Nationalist Citizens Party and support the NDA,” she stated.
Senior TMC leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay confirmed that the dissident faction had already merged with the Nationalist Citizens Party, which he described as a regional party. The Nationalist Citizens Party is a lesser-known, registered but unrecognized party based in Tripura.
Dispute Over Party Symbol
When questioned about the competing claims from the Mamata Banerjee-led faction, Bandyopadhyay noted that the issue of who constitutes the legitimate TMC would be decided by the courts. He added that they would seek to claim the party's electoral symbol of two flowers. “Court will decide later who is the real TMC. We met the Speaker and gave him our request,” he said.
Impact on NDA Strength
Unlike the recent split in the Aam Aadmi Party in the Rajya Sabha, the rebel TMC MPs are not merging with the BJP. Instead, they are seeking recognition as an independent bloc that would support the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). With their backing, the NDA's strength in the Lok Sabha would rise to 313.
TMC Leadership's Response
In a parallel move, TMC parliamentary party leader in the Lok Sabha, Abhishek Banerjee, also wrote to Speaker Om Birla, arguing that a separate bloc is impermissible under the law and should not be recognized. The TMC leadership has maintained that the rebel MPs should resign and seek re-election through bypolls.
The development underscores deep fissures within the TMC and sets the stage for further political maneuvering in the Lok Sabha.
