New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is reviewing the status of the 20 rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs and is expected to take a decision only after hearing both factions, sources said on Tuesday.
According to sources, the Speaker’s office has sent an email to the group of TMC MPs led by Mamata Banerjee, inviting them for a formal meeting. Any decision regarding the rebel faction’s request for a merger is likely to be taken only after consultations with the party’s official leadership.
The development follows a formal split in the TMC’s Lok Sabha contingent, with 20 dissident MPs meeting the Speaker and submitting a letter seeking the merger of their group with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).
Reacting to the move, TMC MP Kirti Azad described the merger bid as “misleading” and “undemocratic,” asserting that the real TMC remains under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee.
“Our letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker clearly states that the real TMC is that of Mamata Banerjee because the political party belongs to her. The letter given by the 20 rebel TMC MPs is misleading,” Azad told ANI.
He further alleged that the rebel group is driven by personal ambitions and internal rivalries.
“There is a rebellion among the traitors over who will become a minister. The party they have merged with has no representation in Parliament. It is an unrecognised and unregistered party. It has no identity. This is not democratic,” Azad said.
Questioning the legitimacy of the NCPI, Azad claimed the party lacks any parliamentary presence.
“How can you merge with a party that has no presence? They are fighting among themselves for posts in a party that doesn’t even exist on the parliamentary map,” he added.
A major political realignment has emerged in West Bengal politics after 20 TMC Lok Sabha MPs merged with the NCPI and extended support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
The move, aimed at navigating the anti-defection law, has significantly altered the strength of the TMC in Parliament.
On June 14, the rebel faction, led by senior parliamentarian Sudip Bandyopadhyay, met Speaker Om Birla and submitted a formal request for separate seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha.
By merging with the NCPI, the group claims to have complied with the provisions of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, which permits a merger if at least two-thirds of a legislative party joins another party. The rebels maintain that their group of 20 MPs comfortably meets that requirement.
The Nationalist Citizens Party of India, a Tripura-based political outfit, has welcomed the development. Its national organising secretary, Shantanu Dey, said the party hopes to expand its presence and work in alignment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision.
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