TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday slammed the breakaway faction led by Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, branding it a "BJP-sponsored" outfit and ruled out any reconciliation with the rebels, while asserting that the "real TMC" remained firmly with her camp. Addressing the party's annual July 21 Martyrs' Day rally near Birla Planetarium in central Kolkata, Banerjee used the occasion -- the emotional and political cornerstone of the TMC's identity -- to draw an uncompromising line against the dissidents, signalling that the battle for the party's organisation and legacy had entered a decisive phase.
"If you want to support the BJP, then directly join the BJP. Don't become the BJP's 'side pillow'. If you have courage, contest elections on the BJP's symbol," the former West Bengal chief minister said, accusing the dissidents of acting at the behest of the saffron party. She also said, "I challenge the traitors to directly join the BJP and fight elections. The more of you who leave, the happier I will be. My students and youth workers are there to fill every vacancy."
Making it clear that there would be no return for those who had deserted her, Banerjee declared, "Those thieves have gone to the BJP. I will never take them back." Her remarks came as Kolkata witnessed an unprecedented three-way political mobilisation on July 21, reflecting the dramatically altered political landscape in West Bengal. While Banerjee's faction organised the Martyrs' Day rally on Cathedral Road near Birla Planetarium, the rebel TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee held a parallel programme on Mayo Road, while the state Congress organised its own gathering at Shahid Minar.
The rival TMC events underscored the deep organisational crisis that has gripped the party since the BJP came to power in the state earlier this year, with both factions staking claim to the Trinamool Congress legacy. Stepping up her attack, Banerjee alleged that the BJP was using central agencies and the state machinery to engineer defections. "They could not even wait for two months. Good that all the thieves have gone to the BJP," she said, alleging that the Enforcement Directorate, the CBI and the state police were being "used to intimidate leaders into switching sides". She also warned that any attempt to wrest the party's election symbol would be challenged legally.
"If they snatch our symbol, I will not spare them. I will go to the Supreme Court. You may take away the symbol, but the real symbol of a party is what people accept from their hearts," she said. Banerjee alleged that her supporters were being denied permission to organise programmes in several districts and vowed to launch a statewide political campaign. "After this, I will travel across the districts. I want to see who has the power to stop me. If permission is denied, we will march on the roads," she said. Thanking the Calcutta High Court for allowing her faction to hold the July 21 rally, Banerjee also expressed gratitude to the families of those killed in the 1993 police firing for attending the programme despite what she described as "intimidation, deprivation and temptations".