Mamata camp submits new names, symbols after EC freezes AITC identity

• The Election Commission has temporarily barred both rival TMC factions from using the AITC name and its reserved “flowers and grass” symbol in the 6th October West Bengal bypolls.

• Mamata Banerjee’s faction submitted alternative names and symbols “under strongest protest”, as the poll panel examines competing claims under the Symbols Order.

• The Congress condemned the interim decision, alleging that it unfairly benefited the breakaway faction and accusing the EC of failing in its constitutional duty.

The Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress has submitted alternative names and symbols to the Election Commission under protest after the poll panel temporarily barred both rival camps from using the All India Trinamool Congress name and its reserved “flowers and grass” symbol in the 6th October West Bengal bypolls.

According to sources, the faction emailed its choices to the commission at 11.36 pm on Thursday, describing the submission as being made “under strongest protest”.

The interim arrangement means that neither the faction led by TMC founder and chairperson Mamata Banerjee nor the rival group headed by senior MLA Arup Roy can contest the Rejinagar and Nandigram by-elections under the AITC name or its familiar symbol.

Both sides were directed to submit three preferred names and three symbols from the commission’s list of free symbols. The EC said the proposed names could retain some similarity to All India Trinamool Congress, but the symbols must be selected from those available to Independents and registered unrecognised political parties.

The commission issued the order after hearing representatives of both groups on Thursday. It concluded that the rival claims required a detailed determination under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968.

“Each group is now claiming to be the party, and therefore the matter requires a substantive determination by the commission under Para 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order 1968,” the order said.

However, with insufficient time to complete the proceedings before the bypolls, the EC introduced an interim arrangement aimed at placing both sides on an equal footing. It will remain in force until the dispute over the party’s recognised name and reserved symbol is decided.

The decision represents a significant challenge for Banerjee, whose hand-drawn “flowers and grass” emblem has been closely associated with the Trinamool Congress since she formed the party after leaving the Congress in 1998. For nearly three decades, it has appeared prominently on ballot papers, flags and campaign material and has become central to the party’s political identity.

TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee, who belongs to the Mamata faction, called the interim order “illegal” and “contrary to law”, alleging that it contained several legal flaws.

“We are not accepting it,” he said, adding: “Facts have not been placed in the order.”

He nevertheless acknowledged that the faction might have to comply with the temporary arrangement. “At times you have to accept things which may not be in adherence to norms, rules and law for a temporary period,” he said.

The rival camp accepted the commission’s decision. Akhruzzaman Ansari, a TMC MLA and the West Bengal Assembly’s chief whip, said his faction remained confident that it would ultimately secure what it considered the party’s legitimate name and symbol.

“Obviously, we wanted the symbol,” Ansari said. “We accept the order by the EC.”

The dispute emerged after the TMC’s defeat in the May Assembly election triggered a rebellion within its legislative ranks. In June, 58 rebel MLAs chose expelled leader Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of the Opposition instead of Mamata Banerjee’s nominee, Sovandeb Chattopadhyay. The Assembly Speaker subsequently recognised the choice, formalising the first major split in the party’s 28-year history.

The rupture spread to Parliament five days later when 20 Lok Sabha MPs, led by senior politician Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, joined the little-known NCPI. They also wrote to Speaker Om Birla supporting the BJP-led NDA as a separate bloc.

Congress leaders strongly criticised the EC’s intervention and alleged that the decision assisted those who had rebelled against Banerjee.

Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal described the freezing of the AITC name and symbol as Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s “late night birthday gift” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He alleged that politicians elected under Banerjee’s leadership were being encouraged to defect with the poll panel’s assistance.

Congress media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the decision was “not justice” but “an abdication of its constitutional responsibility”.

“The breakaway faction of the AITC has no constitutional basis and hence, no legitimate claim to the AITC symbol. The symbol belongs to the party that bears its name,” Khera said.

The BJP, meanwhile, sought to use the development to attack the TMC. West Bengal BJP spokesperson Debjit Sarkar claimed that the crisis reflected public anger over the party’s record in the state.

The immediate challenge for both factions is to establish recognisable identities before campaigning gathers pace for the two by-elections. Candidates who had expected to contest under the TMC banner will now have to introduce temporary names and symbols to voters.

The longer-term question of which faction controls the AITC name and the “flowers and grass” symbol remains before the Election Commission. Until a final decision is delivered, one of West Bengal’s most recognisable political emblems will remain absent from the 6 October ballot.

With PTI inputs