The Election Commission has assigned new names and symbols to the two factions involved in the Trinamool Congress dispute after freezing the party’s original name and election symbol. The Mamata Banerjee-led faction will use the name “Mamata All India Trinamool Congress” and contest with the symbol of a football player. The faction led by Arup Roy has received the name “Democratic Trinamool Congress” and the envelope symbol. The poll panel took the step after recognising the split and asking both groups to submit alternative names and symbols for use while the dispute over the party’s original identity remains unresolved.
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Mamata and Rebel Factions Submit New Names and Symbols Amid Party Split
The Election Commission had asked both factions to provide up to three choices for their proposed party names and symbols. The Mamata Banerjee camp submitted three possible names, including “Mamata All India Trinamool Congress”. For its election symbol, the faction proposed a football player and a cricket bat. The football-related choice also carries a political association because Mamata Banerjee has frequently used football and sports imagery in her public campaigns. However, the Election Commission ultimately allotted the football-player symbol to her faction. The decision comes ahead of bypolls in West Bengal, making the allocation of distinct names and symbols important for candidates and voters.
The Arup Roy faction, represented in the dispute by West Bengal Assembly Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, also submitted its alternatives to the poll panel. The group proposed “Jatiyatabadi Trinamool Congress”, which translates to “Nationalistic Trinamool Congress”, and “Ganatantrik Trinamool Congress”, meaning “Democratic Trinamool Congress”. For the symbol, the faction suggested a blackboard, an envelope and a torch. The Election Commission selected “Democratic Trinamool Congress” as the group’s temporary name and allotted the envelope as its symbol. The allocation gives the rival faction a separate electoral identity while the wider dispute continues.
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Election Commission Freezes Trinamool Name and ‘Flowers and Grass’ Symbol
The symbol dispute follows the Election Commission’s September 17 decision to freeze the original Trinamool Congress name and its “flowers and grass” symbol. The poll panel took the interim step after the internal dispute resulted in competing claims over the party’s identity. Until the commission resolves the underlying dispute, neither faction can use the frozen party name and symbol. The decision also has immediate significance because West Bengal has upcoming Assembly bypolls, and candidates need a clear party identity and symbol on the ballot. The Election Commission’s official election-management information lists bypolls in West Bengal among the current electoral processes.
Ritabrata Banerjee welcomed the decision to freeze the original name and symbol and argued that the move showed that a political party could not function like a privately controlled company. He also pointed to the upcoming bypolls and said his faction had submitted alternative names and symbols to the Election Commission. Banerjee described the dispute as a contest between a “collective” and a “cult”, framing it as an argument over how the party should function. His remarks represent the rebel faction’s position rather than an independently established finding. Meanwhile, the Election Commission’s interim arrangement gives both camps separate names and symbols for the period in which the original party identity remains frozen.
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