An unexpected meeting in New Delhi has led to the most significant internal division in the 28-year history of the Trinamool Congress. A group of 60 MLAs has now claimed the party’s legislative leadership in West Bengal.
The sequence started with a brief encounter on May 22 between Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and MLA Ritabrata Banerjee at Bengal Bhavan. Within 13 days, this event altered the state’s political dynamics and sparked open dissent inside the ruling party.
After the West Bengal Assembly election results on May 4, signs of internal strain appeared. Attendance at party meetings reportedly dropped amid growing concerns over leadership and organisational control. Additional friction arose from long-standing issues regarding power distribution, including the rising role of MP Abhishek Banerjee and various controversies.
The pivotal moment occurred on May 22 in Delhi when Ritabrata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari met at Bengal Bhavan before scheduled appointments. Banerjee later described the exchange as short and informal. He stated that Adhikari inquired about his stay and noted that opposition MLAs were being invited to administrative sessions.
Although both sides initially viewed the interaction as routine, political speculation quickly spread in Bengal. Within days, Ritabrata Banerjee led a coordinated challenge involving up to 60 of the party’s 80 MLAs. The group submitted signatures to the Assembly Speaker, who granted them recognition and designated space for the opposition leadership. The rebels then selected Banerjee as Leader of the Opposition.
This marks the first formal division in the TMC since its founding in 1998. Party leaders responded by dissolving all organisational committees and frontal wings in West Bengal in an effort to restore order. The episode has revealed deep internal divisions and presented the leadership with its most serious test to date.
