Lok Sabha speaker to hear both TMC factions ahead of decision on rebel group; NCPI announces new chief

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will hear the defected TMC MPs as also the faction led by Mamata Banerjee before deciding on giving recognition to the breakaway faction even as the NCPI—the party which the rebel faction will join—has named Jyotiprakash Chatterji as its new president.

One of the leading faces of the TMC rebel faction, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, claimed on Tuesday, 16 June, that the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) has agreed to accept the joining of all the dissident Lok Sabha members of her party, whose numbers are likely to go up to 22 from the present 20.

The Lok Sabha Speaker will hear the defected TMC MPs as well as the faction led by Mamata Banerjee before deciding on giving recognition to the breakaway faction, sources privy to the development said.

If the Speaker accepts the TMC rebels' plea, the NCPI will become the second largest constituent of the NDA in Lok Sabha ahead of the TDP which has 16 MPs and the JD(U) which has 12. The BJP on its own has 239 members excluding the Speaker.

The NCPI, which has been thrust into the spotlight after the TMC rebel Lok Sabha faction's announcement of merger with it, named Chatterji as its new president, according to Dastidar. However, little is known about Chatterji, much like the party itself.

The NCPI registered as a political party in January 2023, with its address listed in Election Commission records as a building in Sankarail, in West Bengal's Howrah district.

Meanwhile, rebel MP Rachna Banerjee, met Lok Sabha secretary general Utpal Kumar Singh on Tuesday and signed the document for the merger.

Sudip Bandyopadhyay, the senior most face in the rebel group, said the first phase of the merger process was completed on Sunday and if they are called again for a second round, then further discussions will take place.

He said the next steps will be taken before the monsoon session of Parliament, which normally begins in third week of July.

"Discussions are taking place on how both sides will sit together, come closer and determine the future course of action for the group,” Bandyopadhyay said.

He said the Speaker's responsibilities include recognising and constituting the parliamentary bloc and allocating party office space and these tasks are expected to be completed expeditiously.