EC invites Trinamool factions to meet on party symbol, name

Representative image only. File | Photo credit: PTI

The Election Commission of India invited the two Trinamool Congress factions for a meeting on 12 September 2026 regarding their claim to control the party, its name, assets and election symbol.

In letters dated September 9 to Ritabrata Banerjee, Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, and former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the election body asked them to attend meetings at 11 am and noon at the Indian International Institute for Democracy and Election Management, Dwarka, in the state capital.

The Commission requested that delegations be limited to five members and that their names be given in advance.

The meetings are being held ahead of the October 6 Assembly by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar, for which the nomination process began on Wednesday (September 9) and ends on September 16. Both factions said they would field candidates in the elections and claimed the Trinamool’s “Joda Ghash Phool” symbol.

Following the precedent set in the Shiv Sena case, sources said the election body is likely to temporarily freeze the party’s symbol. In October 2022, ahead of the Andheri East Assembly by-poll, the Commission passed an interim order stating that neither the Eknath Shinde faction nor the Uddhav Thackeray group of the Shiv Sena could use the name “Shiv Sena” or the “bow and arrow” symbol. Both groups had to choose their own names, including a reference to the parent party name if they wished, and choose alternative symbols from the Commission’s list of free symbols. This freeze was intended for bypass only.

Mr Ritabrata leads a group of about 60 out of 80 elected Trinamool MLAs who squared off with Ms Mamata after the party’s defeat in the BJP in the assembly polls earlier this year.

Mr. Ritabrata’s faction has previously approached the electoral body, claiming the party’s name, financial assets and election symbol. It said it will contest the upcoming polls using the Trinamool name and symbol, while remaining ready to contest as an independent if the poll body does not recognize its claim before the nomination process is over.

Interestingly, it remains to be seen whether Ms. Banerjee will enter the fray from Nandigram or Rejinagar constituencies.

Published – 10 Sep 2026 22:31 IST