Loyalists are rallying behind Mamata, saying the ousted leader cannot lead the Trinamool in the Assembly

Trinamool’s Kunal Ghosh and Arup Roy walk out after attending an administrative meeting chaired by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari in Howrah on June 3, 2026. Photo credit: PTI

Former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s loyalists at the Trinamool Congress on Wednesday (June 3) said an ousted leader like Ritabrata Banerjee cannot function as their Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly. This comes after 58 Trinamool MLAs joined hands with Mr. Banerjee and defected from the party to declare themselves as the main opposition party in the house. They also declared Mr. Banerjee as the Leader of the Opposition.

“All the MLAs who won are all Trinamool candidates and they used Ms Mamata Banerjee’s image to win. She worked hard to make these MLAs win. Now an expelled leader cannot be the head of a political party,” said senior Trinamool MLA Kunal Ghosh, criticizing the 58 MLAs who rallied behind Mr Banerjee.

Mr Ghosh further added that “Ms Banerjee is the original Trinamool Congress” – the leader who gave birth to the party. “She is the Maa of the Trinamool,” Mr. Ghosh said.

Mr. Banerjee along with MLA Sandipan Saha were expelled from the party on Monday on charges of “anti-party activities”.

Following the rift in the party, senior leader and Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee said that “people who stand by Mrs. Mamata Banerjee today will stand by her in the future.”

“Those who chose to betray Didi today will ultimately be judged by the people. Their actions only reinforce the impression that they are no different from the BJP,” wrote Kalyan Banerjee. He further added that the real strength of Trinamool lies in the core workers of the party.

Other supporters of Ms. Mamata Banerjee also echoed this sentiment. “Trinamool stands for Mrs. Mamata Banerjee and the people. The people and Mrs. Mamata Banerjee are both with Trinamool,” MP Dola Sen said while on her way to a meeting at Mrs. Mamata Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat.

In a similar vein, Kamarhati Trinamool MLA Madan Mitra and other old party loyalists said that their party has only one leader and that is Mrs. Mamata Banerjee. “I don’t care what others say,” Mr. Mitra said.

Party units disbanded

Earlier in the day, in a bid to curb dissent, Trinamool dissolved all party units across West Bengal. All Trinamool-run front organizations have also been disbanded, the party said, stressing the need for a massive overhaul after the humiliating May 4 election loss.

“The party will conduct a comprehensive exercise of introspection, performance review and organizational evaluation at all levels. Based on the findings of this exercise, the organizational structure of the parent body and all frontal organizations will be renewed and announced in due course,” Trinamool said in an official statement on its social media platforms.

However, this development has led to rumors in the state and its political circles that the Trinamool party has been disbanded. However, Mr Ghosh said the party continued to exist and that rumors of its dissolution were false. “Various Trinamool Congress committees have been dissolved, not the party itself,” Ghosh said. He added that they are ready to review their structures and will set up committees and local bodies in the coming days.

Published – 03 Jun 2026 21:57 IST