Leading the breakaway group, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said the 20 MPs would join the Nationalist Citizens Party (NCP) and align themselves with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). The announcement came after the rebel leaders met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and submitted a formal communication outlining their decision.
“We have the support of two-thirds of the Trinamool’s Lok Sabha MPs. We will function as part of the NDA and work under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Ghosh Dastidar said.
The move marks a major escalation of the political crisis engulfing the Trinamool Congress. With the party holding 28 seats in the Lok Sabha, the exit of 20 MPs could significantly weaken the Opposition’s strength in the House ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
According to sources, the decision to merge with the Nationalist Citizens Party was driven by legal considerations. Forming an entirely new bloc could have invited procedural and constitutional hurdles, whereas operating through an existing registered political party was viewed as a safer route.
Senior MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, once considered among Mamata Banerjee’s closest confidants and one of the last leaders to join the rebel camp, described the merger as a strategic necessity.
“This is how the process works. Even if two-thirds of the legislators leave a party, they cannot instantly claim ownership of its name and identity. In July, we will seek recognition as the legitimate Trinamool because we represent two-thirds of its Lok Sabha strength. After that, the courts will decide,” he said.
TMC rebels :
Will merge with Nationalist Citizens Party (NCP)
Indian Democracy has become the “theatre of the absurd”
A joke !
The rebels of the TMC legislative party cannot merge with a political party ; that can happen only if the TMC wished to do so !
Disqualify them !
— Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) June 14, 2026
READ: Mamata’s Woes Deepen; TMC Down to Six LS MPs
The Trinamool Congress, however, accused the dissidents of betraying the mandate they received from voters. Senior party leader Madan Mitra said the MPs had contested elections on the Trinamool symbol and promised to strengthen the organisation under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership.
“They sought votes in Mamata Banerjee’s name and under the Trinamool banner. Abandoning that commitment after being elected amounts to deceiving the people,” Mitra said. He added that the party leadership would decide whether to challenge the rebels’ actions legally, insisting that “this is only the beginning of a long process.”
Earlier in the day, Trinamool leaders Sagarika Ghose and Kirti Azad met Speaker Om Birla with a letter from the party’s parliamentary leadership, including Abhishek Banerjee, urging him not to grant separate recognition to the breakaway group.
The letter argued that a legislature party derives its authority from the parent political organisation and cannot exist independently of it. It cited judicial precedents to contend that the law does not recognise competing factions within the same political party as separate entities. Instead, it provides for determining which group represents the original party while adjudicating disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule.
“The framework contemplates the identification of the one legitimate political party, not the recognition of rival factions within it,” the letter stated.
The Speaker’s response to the competing claims is now expected to shape the next phase of what has emerged as one of the most serious internal crises faced by the Trinamool Congress in recent years.
