Mamata camp suffers fresh blow as Chandrima joins TMC rebel faction

The exodus from Mamata Banerjee's camp gathered further pace on Saturday, with former West Bengal minister of state for finance (independent charge) Chandrima Bhattacharya becoming the latest senior Trinamool Congress leader to join the party's "rebel majority" faction led by expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee.

Bhattacharya, who also served as the Trinamool Congress' former West Bengal president, resigned from all party posts shortly after holding a meeting with leaders of the rebel camp. Her exit marks yet another setback for Mamata Banerjee, whose faction has seen most of the heavyweight ministers from her 2011-2026 cabinet switch allegiance in recent weeks.

Explaining her decision, Bhattacharya said Mamata Banerjee had questioned her loyalty after the rebel faction took control of the Trinamool Congress' principal party office in Kolkata. Under those circumstances, she said, it was no longer appropriate for her to continue in the former chief minister's camp.

She also accused Mamata Banerjee of never allowing her to function independently while she served as minister of state for finance (independent charge), alleging that her role in the government had been heavily constrained.

With Bhattacharya's defection, nearly the entire former Mamata Banerjee cabinet has now crossed over to the Ritabrata Banerjee-led faction. Other prominent former ministers who have joined the rebel camp include Firhad Hakim, Aroop Biswas, Javed Ahmed Khan, Jyotipriya Mallick, Siuli Saha and Arup Roy.

Among them, Hakim, Khan, Saha and Roy continue to serve as elected MLAs. Roy, a four-time legislator from Howrah (Central), was recently appointed chairman of the rebel faction's newly constituted National Working Committee (NWC).

However, the political future of a few senior leaders remains uncertain. former education minister Bratya Basu and former women and child development and commerce and industries minister Dr Sashi Panja, both of whom lost the recent assembly elections, have neither reaffirmed their loyalty to Mamata Banerjee nor formally joined the rebel camp.

Former minister Soumen Mahapatra has also maintained complete silence amid the deepening split.

At present, the only prominent former minister and sitting MLA to publicly reaffirm his support for Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee is veteran Trinamool leader Madan Mitra, whom Mamata Banerjee has previously described as the party's "most colourful personality".

Following Bhattacharya's resignation, the post of West Bengal Trinamool Congress president remains vacant, with Mamata Banerjee yet to name a successor.

Bhattacharya's departure further strengthens the rebel faction's claim of commanding the majority within the Trinamool Congress, while deepening the political crisis confronting Mamata Banerjee's diminished camp.

With IANS inputs