The Election Commission issued an interim order on the Trinamool Congress’ election symbol on Thursday. Both factions have been asked to choose new symbols. The Commission has also temporarily barred the use of the old ‘two flowers on grass’ symbol.
The Commission had called representatives of both factions for a meeting in Delhi earlier today. By-elections will be held on 6 October in West Bengal’s Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies. Both factions had fielded candidates using the same symbol.
Mohammad Eteshamul Haq from the rebel TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee will contest from Nandigram, while Safiuddin Sheikh will contest from Rejinagar. Meanwhile, former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s TMC announced Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) as its candidate from Nandigram and Rabiul Alam Chowdhury from Rejinagar on Sunday.
Nandigram: A crucial seat for both the TMC and BJP
Nandigram has long been a major centre of political conflict between the TMC and BJP. The anti-land acquisition movement in the region in 2007 played a major role in bringing Mamata Banerjee and the TMC to power in 2011.
In 2021, Mamata contested the election from here against Bengal’s incumbent Chief Minister, Suvendu Adhikari, but lost. After joining the BJP, Adhikari has become the TMC’s biggest rival.
In the 2026 Assembly election, Shubhendu Adhikari contested both the Nandigram and Bhabanipur seats and won both. In Bhabanipur, he defeated Mamata Banerjee by 15,105 votes. Adhikari received 73,917 votes, while Mamata Banerjee received 58,812 votes.
Adhikari later retained the Bhabanipur seat and resigned from Nandigram. The Nandigram seat then fell vacant.
TMC faces crisis over organisation and party name
The by-election is being held at a time when the TMC is facing an organisational crisis after losing power in the Assembly election. Mamata Banerjee’s faction and Ritabrata Banerjee’s faction are at loggerheads over the party’s name and its two-flower-and-grass election symbol. Both factions have staked a claim to the party’s name, election symbol and funds.
The Election Commission held talks with both sides on Saturday, but no decision has been taken yet. The Ritabrata faction has said it will continue to stake its claim to the TMC’s name and symbol. If the nomination deadline expires without a decision from the Commission, it may contest the election as independent candidates.
By-elections in four states
Two seats in Tamil Nadu: Madurantakam and Dharapuram-These two Assembly seats fell vacant after the resignations of Maragatham Kumaravel and P. Sathyabama. The final voter lists for both seats were issued on 23 February.
Puducherry’s Thattanchavady seat: This seat fell vacant after the resignation of N. Rangasamy. The electoral roll for the seat was published on 14 February.
West Bengal’s Rejinagar-Nandigram seats: The Rejinagar seat fell vacant after the resignation of Humayun Kabir, while the Nandigram seat fell vacant after the resignation of Suvendu Adhikari. The final voter lists for these seats were issued on 28 February.
Assam’s Nagaon Lok Sabha seat: The Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam fell vacant after Pradyut Bordoloi’s resignation. The final electoral roll for the seat was released on 10 February.
