The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has formally responded to the Election Commission’s interim order restricting the party from using its existing name and election symbol in the upcoming West Bengal bypolls.
The party, led by founder and chairperson Mamata Banerjee, submitted a list of alternative names and symbols to the poll panel late Thursday night. The submission was made at around 11:36 pm, according to sources.
The TMC made it clear that the alternatives were being submitted only because of the Election Commission’s interim direction and that it strongly objected to the order.
EC blocks use of TMC name and symbol for bypolls
The Election Commission’s interim order directed the two rival sides involved in the dispute over the All India Trinamool Congress not to use the party’s existing name or its familiar “flowers and grass” symbol for the October 6 bypolls.
The poll panel also instructed both sides to submit their preferred alternative names and symbols.
According to the order, the new name could retain some similarity to the existing All India Trinamool Congress name. However, the replacement symbol would have to be selected from the list of free symbols available to independent candidates and registered unrecognised political parties.
The bypolls are scheduled to take place in Rejinagar and Nandigram on October 6.
EC calls arrangement temporary
The Election Commission said the interim decision was taken because there was not enough time to complete the full proceedings under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, before the bypolls.
The commission said the temporary arrangement was specifically intended to cover the upcoming elections.
The existing restrictions will remain in place until the larger dispute over the party’s name and symbol is finally decided under Paragraph 15 of the Symbols Order.
TMC faces internal rebellion
The Election Commission’s decision comes amid a major internal crisis within the Trinamool Congress following the party’s defeat in the West Bengal Assembly election in May.
The dispute first became visible within the TMC legislature party before expanding to the party’s parliamentary ranks.
In June, 58 rebel MLAs reportedly elected expelled leader Ritabrata Banerjee as their Leader of Opposition candidate instead of Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, who was backed by the Mamata Banerjee camp.
The Assembly Speaker later recognised the rebel grouping, marking a major development in the internal conflict.
Dispute spreads to Parliament
The crisis subsequently reached Parliament, with 20 Lok Sabha MPs led by senior leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar joining the lesser-known NCPI.
The MPs also wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and backed the BJP-led NDA as a separate bloc, further widening the split within the party.
The developments have created an unprecedented challenge for the TMC, which has used its existing name and symbol since its formation in 1998 after Mamata Banerjee broke away from the Congress.
The “flowers and grass” symbol has remained closely associated with the party’s political identity for nearly three decades. The Election Commission’s interim order now means the symbol cannot be used by either side in the upcoming bypolls while the broader dispute remains pending.
What happens next
For the October 6 bypolls, the immediate issue will be the allocation of alternative names and symbols to the rival factions.
The larger question of who is entitled to use the All India Trinamool Congress name and the “flowers and grass” symbol will be determined separately under the Election Symbols Order.
The TMC’s submission of alternative choices, made under protest, therefore serves as a temporary electoral arrangement rather than a final settlement of the party’s internal dispute.
