ECI freezes Trinamool name and symbol as Mamata backs Congress in Nandigram

The Election Commission of India froze the Trinamool Congress's name and its grass-and-twin-flowers symbol late on Thursday, September 17, 2026, allotting separate names and symbols to the two rival factions of the party. The faction led by Mamata Banerjee was given the name "Mamata All India Trinamool Congress" along with the symbol of a football player, while the group led by Ritabrata Banerjee received the name "Democratic Trinamool Congress" and the envelope symbol.

Congress leaders came out in support of Mamata Banerjee even before she had formally responded to the Commission's decision. Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi criticised the poll body, stating that the issue was not merely Mamata Banerjee's fight but that of every political party and every voter who wants free and fair elections. He said that when an entire party can be stolen, it is hardly surprising that the votes of millions of Indians can be stolen too. Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal also condemned the decision and demanded that the original symbol be restored to the Mamata Banerjee-led faction.

On Friday, September 18, Sanchita Pradhan (Dey), the candidate of the Mamata Banerjee-led faction for the Nandigram Assembly bypoll, withdrew her candidature. Photographs of her meeting West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari surfaced on social media. With the deadline for filing nominations over, Mamata Banerjee announced her faction's support for the Congress candidate, Milan Pradhan, in Nandigram, and also extended support to the Congress candidate in the Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam.

Within hours of that announcement, the Congress candidate in Nandigram was arrested by the West Bengal Police in connection with an old case linked to the Nandigram land agitation. The arrest drew strong reactions from both parties. Mamata Banerjee questioned the timing, writing on social media that the BJP's politics of vendetta and atrocities showed a clear pattern, and alleging that manipulation, vote loot and intimidation were killing democracy. Rahul Gandhi described the arrest as political revenge and a murder of democracy, saying the BJP had no faith in fair elections and that the Congress would neither fear nor bow down.

The developments come amid an existential crisis for the Trinamool Congress after the BJP's sweep in the West Bengal Assembly elections, with a majority of its Lok Sabha MPs and MLAs deserting Mamata Banerjee. The emerging understanding between the Congress and Mamata Banerjee could reshape the Opposition's strategy in the State. Weeks earlier, she had proposed that the Congress support her faction's candidate in Nandigram in return for her faction backing the Congress candidate in Rejinagar. The State Congress leadership has historically been sceptical of Mamata Banerjee, particularly over the 2011-2021 period when the Trinamool Congress was in power and the Congress alleged that it engineered defections and weakened its organisation.

Nearly 28 years after Mamata Banerjee broke away from the Congress to form the Trinamool Congress, she is now seeking the Congress's support amid a crisis over her party's identity and symbol. She had earlier allied with the Congress to end the 34-year Left Front rule in West Bengal in 2011, a transition in which Nandigram played a key role. The upcoming bypoll has also become politically significant for Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who had represented both Bhabanipur and Nandigram before giving up the latter constituency.