Behind TMC MPs' rebellion, heat on the ground and an enabler BJP

Published 10 June 2026 · politics

Mamata Banerjee, the founder of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), seems to have lost control over the party founded by her three decades ago. Leaders from

Mamata Banerjee, the founder of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), seems to have lost control over the party founded by her three decades ago. Leaders from all levels, be it the grassroots, MLAs and even MPs have rebelled. Local leaders of the TMC are facing people's anger, and quitting. But what is the reason that even Lok Sabha MPs of the TMCs are ready to switch allegiance to the BJP-led NDA? Read Full Story Over 100 councillors have resigned from their posts. At the state level, the rebel camp led by Ritabrata Banerjee commands the loyalty of at least 60 of the 80 MLAs. At the parliamentary level, 20 of the TMC's 41 MPs, led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, were angling to be part of the NDA. It's a collapse of control at all levels for Mamata Banejee. And it has been accelerated by at least two factors — widespread public outrage that is making councillors flee and the MPs nervous, and a conducive environment being created by the BJP for those wanting to rebel. Those rebelling have cited several allegations, including corruption by a section of the leadership and Mamata's patronage of her nephew Abhishek, who is seen as the prime reason for the TMC's loss in the election. While it might seem that the TMC leaders had become self-righteous suddenly, a sense of self-preservation is at play here. TMC leaders, including Abhishek and Kalyan Banerjee, have been heckled with "chor, choir (thief, thief)" chants. Many of them have been attacked with eggs and tomatoes too. The 15 years of TMC's corruption, authoritarian rule and repression fed widespread anger. Earlier protected, the TMC leaders are now facing people's wrath. The MPs are trying to escape this anger. These MPs will also be the first to face re-election in the general election of 2029. Seeing the Assembly segments of their parliamentary constituencies fall like nine pins, they are worried. Some of them also fear facing action from probe agencies in corruption cases linked to them, and believe that perceived proximity to the ruling regime might shield them. While the ground is scorching hot, the BJP has reportedly created a conducive environment for those wanting to rebel against Mamata Banerjee and her handful of loyalists.

While not fully welcoming the defectors, the BJP is being seen as lending the rebels crucial support. ARE REBEL TMC LEADERS GETTING NERVOUS OF THE PUBLIC MOOD? Since May 4, when the BJP swept the West Bengal Assembly elections and pushed the TMC back into the opposition, it is not the party's top leadership but its grassroots functionaries who have borne the brunt of public anger. At least 101 councillors have resigned across the state in the weeks following the defeat. The exodus includes eight councillors who quit en masse after the TMC's humiliating loss in the Falta repolling. For those who stayed on, the pressure has only intensified. A series of arrests has stripped many local leaders of the political protection they once enjoyed. Kolkata Ward 123 councillor Sudip Polley was arrested on extortion charges on May 23. The arrests of Ward 36 councillor Sachin Singh and Ward 106 councillor Arijit Das Thakur on June 2, Ward 2 councillor Mahesh Kumar Sharma on June 3, and Ward 114 councillor Biswajit Mondal on June 4. The arrests have been accompanied by a remarkable display of public hostility. Dozens of TMC local leaders and councillors have been assaulted and had eggs thrown at them. According to a report in The Hindu, the fear of people attacking TMC councillors ran so high that a planned meeting at Trinamool Bhavan on June 7 had to be called off. The backlash isn't limited to councillors. Abhishek Banerjee, once regarded as the party's de facto number two, was attacked and pelted with eggs and stones in Sonarpur on May 30. The following day, MP Kalyan Banerjee was heckled outside Chanditala Police Station in Hooghly and struck on the head by an object thrown from the crowd. On June 6, Kamarhati MLA Madan Mitra's convoy was chased through his constituency by protesters who showered it with eggs. It is this atmosphere of public fury that might be pushing some MPs away from Mamata. Some rebel MPs who are exploring a shift towards the NDA are motivated more by their self-preservation instincts than by ideology, said author and political analyst Sayantan Ghosh, professor at St Xavier's College and author of Battleground Bengal. "Many of these rebelling MPs who are angling to join the NDA are nervous that they would be similarly heckled and mobbed if they go to their constituencies," Ghosh told India Today Digital.