Will Ritabrata Banerjee prove to be the ‘game changer’ in Bengal politics? Why his rivalry is with Abhishek Banerjee, not Mamata.

Will Ritabrata Banerjee prove ‘Baazigar’ of Bengal politics? Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress has split. 58 rebel MLAs of TMC have chosen Ritabrata Banerjee as their leader. Following this, the Speaker approved him as the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly. With this announcement, Mamata has lost control of TMC in West Bengal. Ritabrata Banerjee, whom Mamata Banerjee had expelled from TMC, claimed to be the real Trinamool Congress along with 59 MLAs, and the Speaker accepted their demand, granting him the status of leader of the legislative party.

After his demand was accepted, Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Ritabrata Banerjee said that 80 MLAs of the party were elected on TMC tickets. More than two-thirds of them presented their claim as the real Trinamool, which has been accepted.

Appeal for Mamata Banerjee to become Chief Advisor

The TMC rebels, or rather the real TMC, have demanded that Mamata Banerjee play the role of Chief Advisor. Ritabrata Banerjee said, we want Mamata Banerjee to be our Chief Advisor and provide such advice that helps us strengthen our position as the opposition.

The new TMC faction has elected Ritabrata Banerjee as the leader of the legislative party. Meanwhile, Javed Khan, Sandeepan Saha, and Shiuli Saha were elected as deputy leaders. Mamata Banerjee is currently silent on this split. Many are questioning whether Ritabrata Banerjee will prove to be the ‘Baazigar’ of Bengal politics. Why are party leaders angry with her nephew Abhishek Banerjee instead of Mamata Banerjee? What were the reasons that forced party leaders to raise the flag of rebellion?

Made a big play in 8 years of politics

According to political pundits, before joining TMC, Ritabrata Banerjee was close to CPI(M). He joined Mamata Banerjee’s TMC in 2018. After that, in 2026, he became an MLA for the first time on a party ticket, and now after the split in TMC, he has become its supreme leader. He now claims to be the face of the real TMC.

He has appealed to make Mamata Banerjee the party’s supreme leader and chief advisor, but has completely rejected Abhishek Banerjee. He said that under Abhishek’s leadership, the party had become a corporate agency that had no connection left with the people.

Why so much anger towards Abhishek Banerjee?

The anger of the rebel MLAs is primarily directed towards Abhishek Banerjee and his close circle. They are particularly venting their frustration over ties with consultancy groups like I-PAC. This led to a heavy defeat for TMC in the recent assembly elections, with their seats dropping from 215 to just 80. Since this defeat, many old party leaders have been angry with Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee.

They blamed Abhishek Banerjee’s high-command style, undue interference in the organization, and alleged corruption. Ritabrata alleged that the signatures of many MLAs on the letter making Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay the Leader of the Opposition were forged. He also accused Abhishek of hijacking the party.

In contrast to Abhishek Banerjee, the rebel leaders still present Mamata Banerjee as their Didi and universally accepted leader. The rebel faction has proposed making her the Chief Advisor. The clear strategy behind this is to target Abhishek’s image of corruption and authoritarianism while maintaining Mamata’s popularity and emotional appeal.

Will Ritabrata become the Baazigar of Bengal politics?

Ritabrata Banerjee has become the Leader of the Opposition