Mamata camp submits new names, symbols 'under protest' after EC freezes AITC identity
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Mamata camp submits new names, symbols 'under protest' after EC freezes AITC identity")
Former West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee
Both Ritabrata’s faction and the Mamata Banerjee-led group claim to be the authentic party ahead of the crucial Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls.
After West Bengal Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee met the full bench of the Election Commission in Delhi on Thursday, the Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) submitted alternative names and symbols to the Election Commission. The party has been barred from using the TMC name and its iconic ‘jora phool’ (twin-flower) symbol for the October 6 bypolls in West Bengal.
According to various media reports that cited sources, the faction emailed its choices to the commission at 11.36 pm on Thursday, “under strongest protest”, ahead of the deadline of 11 am on Friday.
Both Ritabrata’s faction and the Mamata Banerjee-led group claim to be the authentic party ahead of the crucial Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls.
As per India Today, three proposed names include references to the former Chief Minister and the TMC, while the two symbol choices are related to sports.
While, the faction led by West Bengal Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee has proposed “Democratic Trinamool Congress” and “Nationalist Trinamool Congress” as options for its new party name, as well as three symbols.
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Senior leader Kalyan Banerjee, representing the Mamata camp, on Thursday said that the rival camp has no basis for interim relief. He questioned how the other side obtained tickets and contested on the party symbol if the chairperson’s term had allegedly ended in 2025. Kalyan stressed that Mamata Banerjee founded the party and the symbol belongs to her side. He argued that any valid election must follow the constitutional hierarchy from booth level upwards and that the claimed 22 June session skipped all processes without notice to MPs. As a multi-state party, AITC requires proper all-India elections, he said, adding that court orders do not bind the Election Commission and the symbol can go only to the authorised faction.
The Commission’s decision will determine which camp—or neither—gets to contest the bypolls under the familiar ‘Jora Phool’. The ruling carries high political stakes in West Bengal, testing organisational claims and potentially reshaping the opposition landscape ahead of larger electoral battles. Both sides have expressed faith in the EC as the final arbiter.
