Trinamool Rebels Offer Clear Run in Nandigram if Mamata Contests Bypoll
The Trinamool rebel faction has offered not to contest the Nandigram bypoll if Mamata Banerjee stands there, amid a party symbol dispute before the Election Commission.
The rebel faction of the Trinamool Congress has said it will not put up a candidate in the Nandigram assembly bypoll if Mamata Banerjee chooses to contest the seat, opening the possibility of a truce between the two wings of the party.
Speaking in New Delhi, rebel leader Ritabrata Banerjee said the faction's candidate selection had been settled collectively but was yet to be announced. He added that the former chief minister was welcome to enter the assembly through the bypoll, which is scheduled for October 6 after Suvendu Adhikari vacated the Nandigram seat.
Ritabrata, who was chosen as Leader of Opposition by the majority of Trinamool MLAs after the party's rout, said Banerjee had historically fared better in by-elections than in general elections. He referred to her defeat in Bhabanipur at the hands of Adhikari, who also won Nandigram and went on to become chief minister, ending her 15-year tenure. Banerjee has not yet commented on whether she will contest.
Another MLA from the rebel camp, Akhruzzaman, said Banerjee had never won a general election from Nandigram, including in 2021, and that the faction was willing to step aside so she could win and work with it for development.
The offer comes amid a tug-of-war over the party symbol that has already reached the Election Commission. Most Trinamool MLAs had broken away after the electoral defeat, blaming Banerjee's nephew and party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, though the rebels have maintained they have no dispute with her personally.
Nandigram carries historical weight for Banerjee, who led a large protest against farmland acquisition there before the 2011 elections that ended Left rule in the state. The Trinamool candidate secured a respectable vote share in the seat despite losing.
A second bypoll is due in Rejinagar, which fell vacant after former Trinamool leader Humayun Kabir resigned. Kabir had won both Naoda and Rejinagar and chose to retain Naoda, forming his own Aam Janata Unnayan Party ahead of the elections. The BJP has said it will win the bypolls regardless of who contests on the Trinamool symbol.