The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday declined to grant interim relief to the Trinamool Congress camp challenging rebel party MLA Ritabrata Banerjee’s appointment as Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, clearing the way for him to continue in the post for now. A Division Bench comprising Justices Shampa Sardar and Ajay Kumar Gupta sent the dispute back to a Single Bench and directed it to decide within two months whether Assembly Speaker Rathindra Bose’s decision to recognise Banerjee as Leader of Opposition was legally valid. Until the Single Bench delivers its decision, Banerjee will remain Leader of Opposition, extending a political and legal setback for the Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress.
Challenge to Speaker's decision
The dispute stems from a petition filed by senior TMC MLA Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, whose name had been put forward by the party leadership for the Leader of Opposition's post. Chattopadhyay challenged the Speaker's decision to reject his claim and instead recognise Ritabrata Banerjee, who heads a rebel faction within the party.
The controversy emerged after competing claims were made over who commanded the support of the TMC legislature party following the change of government in West Bengal. The rebel faction claimed majority support among the party's legislators and backed Banerjee for the post. The Speaker subsequently recognised him as Leader of Opposition, triggering the court battle.
Single Bench had earlier refused stay
The matter had first reached a Single Bench headed by Justice Krishna Rao. On June 18, the court declined to stay the Speaker's decision and refused the interim protection sought by Chattopadhyay. The Single Bench noted that the resolution relied upon by the TMC leadership in support of Chattopadhyay had itself become disputed.
According to the court proceedings, the TMC leadership had communicated to the Speaker that Chattopadhyay had been unanimously selected as Leader of Opposition. The Speaker subsequently sought documents and minutes relating to the decision. A resolution later submitted by the party became controversial after questions were raised over some of the signatures on it.
The rival faction, meanwhile, claimed that it enjoyed the backing of 58 of the 80 MLAs elected on TMC tickets. Its legislators submitted a joint representation and appeared before the Speaker to support Banerjee's claim.
Justice Rao concluded at that stage that Chattopadhyay had not established a prima facie case warranting an interim injunction against Banerjee's appointment.
Division Bench approached
Chattopadhyay subsequently challenged the refusal to grant interim protection before the Division Bench.
The appellate court has now refrained from removing Banerjee from the post while the underlying dispute remains unresolved. Instead, it has directed the Single Bench to examine the matter afresh and arrive at a decision within two months.
The arrangement means there will be no immediate change in the leadership of the Opposition in the Assembly.
The substantive question — whether the Speaker acted legally in recognising Banerjee instead of the candidate backed by the official TMC leadership — will now return to the Single Bench.
Battle over legislative leadership
At the heart of the controversy is the distinction between the organisational leadership of a political party and numerical support within its legislature party.
Under the Bengal Legislative Assembly (Members' Emoluments) Act, the Leader of Opposition is the member who leads the Opposition party with the greatest numerical strength in the Assembly. Where a dispute arises over the identity of that party or its leader, the law gives the Speaker the authority to decide the question for the purposes of the Act.
The rebel camp has relied heavily on its claim of majority support among TMC legislators. The Mamata Banerjee camp, on the other hand, has challenged the Speaker's decision to recognise a legislator who had broken with the party leadership.
The legal dispute has therefore developed into a test not merely of an individual appointment but of how legislative strength, party decisions and the Speaker's statutory powers interact when a political party is divided.
Ritabrata stays in post
For the immediate future, the latest High Court order preserves the status quo.
Banerjee will continue to function as Leader of Opposition while the Single Bench considers the legality of his appointment. The Single Bench has been given two months to decide the dispute, ensuring that the matter does not remain indefinitely unresolved.
The eventual ruling could have consequences beyond the identity of the Leader of Opposition, particularly because the dispute involves competing claims to represent the TMC legislature party.
For now, however, the attempt by the Mamata Banerjee camp to secure Banerjee's immediate removal from the post has failed, leaving the rebel MLA in control of the Opposition leadership while the legal battle enters another round.