Kolkata: Rebel Trinamool Lok Sabha MPs are likely to meet over dinner on Sunday and then meet Speaker Om Birla the next day. On that day, the rebel MPs will claim to be the "real" Trinamool Congress and request to be considered a part of NDA, according to rebel MP Jagadish Chandra Basunia. According to sources, CM Suvendu Adhikari may also reach Delhi on Sunday.
This prompted TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee — against whom the MPs have rebelled — to break his silence on the issue and insist that 2.6 crore people voted for Trinamool in the 2026 assembly polls. He vowed not to cede an inch and to fight back.
On Friday, screenshots showing the signatures of 19 rebel Trinamool MPs surfaced on social media. The screenshots showed names of Saayoni Ghosh, Deepak Adhikari (Dev), and Mala Roy among others as signatories. While no one from the rebel camp contested the screenshots' authenticity, almost everyone voiced their grievance against Abhishek. Trinamool, however, questioned the document's genuineness and dared the rebel group to share the full letter containing the signatures. Roy has already resigned from her post as president of Mahila Trinamool Congress.
"We will go to the Lok Sabha and meet the Speaker on Monday. We have formed a separate bloc and will appeal to the Speaker for recognition. We will also discuss various procedural aspects and potential legal complications. As a separate bloc, we will support the NDA and work towards development," Basunia told TOI. He added that 14 MPs signed first and the rest signed letter. Saayoni was the last to sign the document, the MP added. Basunia also said that Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar will be the leader of the bloc and Satabdi Roy will be the deputy leader, while the chief whip is yet to be decided.
Reacting to this, Abhishek said: "BJP has been trying many tactics — from creating a rift in our party to intimidating party workers, taking over party offices, and destroying our organisation. But no matter what they do, they cannot deny the fact that 2.6 crore people voted for us and we got 41% vote share."
Taking on BJP and rebel MPs, Abhishek said there was no euphoria among people after the change in govt. "Look at the parivartan (change)... compare 2026 to 2011. After 8pm, every road is deserted. People voted for employment and the Annapurna Bhandar scheme, not for bulldozers."
Abhishek also said there has been no concrete discussion of party posts between him and Rahul Gandhi regarding a possible Congress-Trinamool merger. "I want to tell the media not to present rumours as facts. Other than Rahul and me, no one knows anything," he said.
Speaking on the rebel MPs' claim, MPs Mahua Moitra and Kirti Azad cited constitutional rules to state that such a claim cannot be entertained.
"Traitor TMC lawmakers don't know the law. The Constitution's 91st Amendment of 2003 removed the provision for a split or separate bloc. The number of MPs is irrelevant — two-thirds of the original political party has to merge with another party. All 19 traitors need to resign and contest on a BJP ticket," Moitra posted on X.
Speaking to PTI, Azad alleged that BJP functionaries were sitting in the homes of MPs who had not signed. "Their homes were targeted. Their families were intimidated and threatened. Bapi Haldar's house was completely wrecked. He was trembling. He is a first-time MP, a young man. You can see that the first eight signatures are listed in a different ink, while the next group, from 14 to 18, is in black ink," Azad said. "They did the same thing to Mitali Bag. She is a first-timer too. She comes from a rural background and has lived a simple life. Her house was also trashed," he added.
Ghosh Dastidar, however, had denied allegations of intimidation and bribery. "There has been no intimidation or threat. Also, not a single rupee has been promised or paid to us," she had said.
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