EC To Hear TMC Rebels, Loyals on Sept 12 Over Party Symbol Claims

Kolkata: Months after losing power in West Bengal, Trinamul Congress has landed in fresh trouble to contest the Assembly bypolls in two seats, Nandigram in East Midnapore and Rejinagar in Murshidabad, which were announced on Tuesday, following a split between the rebel and loyal factions in the party.

The internal feud has reached such a level that both sides are determined to field their own candidates on their party symbol, Joraphool (twin flowers), at both the seats which will go to the by-election on October 6.

The tussle unfolded on Wednesday when the Election Commission called both the TMC factions to the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management in New Delhi to hear their claims of stake on their party symbol, Joraphool (twin flowers), within a span of an hour on September 12.

Both sides have been asked to bring a delegation of five members with a prior intimation about them. While rebel TMC MLAs headed by leader of the opposition Ritabrata Banerjee have been asked to appear before the EC at 11 am, their opponents, led by party supremo Mamata Banerjee, have been given time at 12 pm.

Earlier in the day, rebel TMC MLA Akhruzzaman informed that the party would hold a national executive committee meeting on Thursday to discuss and finalize the bypoll candidates’ names. “The names are expected to be announced on September 11. Our symbol to fight this bypoll will be Joraphool of TMC. We will urge the EC again to get the right on the party symbol before the submission of nominations.”

In the evening, Howrah Central TMC MLA Arup Roy, recently made the national executive committee chief by the dissidents, submitted a deputation about their stake on the party symbol to the Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal in Kolkata. On the other hand, the TMC loyal group has also started screening candidates’ names for their bypoll contest on their party symbol.

Speculation is rife that Ms Banerjee may again contest at Nandigram where she lost in 2021. Meanwhile, Aam Janata Unnayan Party founder and Nowda MLA Humayun Kabir has made his son Golam Nabi Azad his party's candidate at Rejinagar. In another development, Nandigram and Rejinagar will have 35 and 36 companies of central forces respectively for the bypoll.