Outgoing Chief Minister of West Bengal and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee. | Photo credit: PTI
After its defeat in the 2026 assembly elections, voices of dissent emerged within the Trinamool Congress, with some leaders blaming the electoral failure on the political consultancy Indian Political Action Committee and the party’s functioning.
Outgoing Trinamool Rajganj MLA Khageswar Roy blamed IPAC for the party’s defeat. “We had to follow the instructions of IPAC. IPAC played a major role in who got the ticket in the elections. The party and IPAC together caused this massive defeat,” Mr. Roy said.
Notably, sportsperson Swapna Barman replaced Mr. Roy as the Trinamool candidate from Rajganj for this election, even though he won in 2021. He said Ms. Barman’s lack of political experience led to her loss from a seat Trinamool had won four times before contesting in 2026. He also claimed that no local leaders were consulted by the party or IPAC before the change of candidates, which led to the loss.
Former Trinamool MLA and district president Sourav Chakraborty expressed frustration over the party’s performance and internal strategy after the poll failure.
“This is a wrong choice of candidates. Everyone loves and trusts Didi (Trinamool Chairperson Mamata Banerjee). IPAC has brought in new people,” Mr Chakraborty said. He also added that the party needs to rethink its strategy and relationship with IPAC to bring about real change.
Another outgoing Trinamool MLA and Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs, former Indian cricketer Manoj Tiwary, left the party soon after its loss due to corruption in the ranks. “Paap baap keo chare na (Sins do not spare even the father),” Mr Tiwary wrote on social media.
“While trying to do my job for the last five years, I faced many hurdles at every step… (Sports Minister) Aroop Biswas did not let me work, they brought me into politics to take advantage of me,” Mr Tiwary said in a video message. He also claimed that he was forced to join the party and fight the 2021 elections as a Trinamool candidate.
Famous Bengali singer Kabir Suman, also a former Trinamool MP, told local media that he was not a fan of the party and was forced to contest on their ticket.
Published – 06 May 2026 22:13 IST
