3 min readUpdated: Jul 6, 2026 10:16 PM IST
Days after the Ritabrata Banerjee faction met the Election Commission of India, the Mamata Banerjee-led group of the TMC on Monday submitted its response to the poll panel, rejecting the rival group’s claim over the party and saying that the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) organisational committees remain valid until 2027 under the party constitution.
Speaking to reporters after submitting the response, TMC Lok Sabha member Kalyan Banerjee said the party filed a “very detailed reply” to the poll panel in response to a representation made by rebel group led by Ritabrata Banerjee.
Kalyan Banerjee rejected the rebel faction’s main contention that the tenure of the AITC committee and National Working Committee expired in 2025, and said that the party constitution had been amended over the years to extend the tenure from three years to four years in 2000 and subsequently to five years in 2006, with the changes communicated to the Election Commission of India.
“The last organisational election was held in 2022. Therefore, automatically, the life of the AITC and National Working Committee remains for a period of five years. It will expire in 2027,” Kalyan told reporters outside the ECI office in Delhi.
He also said that the allegation that the committee’s tenure had ended in 2025 was “incorrect and not supported by the constitutional provisions” of the party.
The TMC MP said that the rebel leaders had themselves recognised the authority of the existing party leadership by contesting the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections on the TMC symbol using candidature papers signed by party chairperson Mamata Banerjee.
“If they are saying the party ceased to exist after 2025, then on what basis did they contest the election? Their own argument would make their election illegal. They should resign immediately,” he said.
A group of MLAs has claimed to be the “original” @AITCofficial , following which the Election Commission sought our response. Today, @MahuaMoitra @sagarikaghose and I, submitted our reply before the Election Commission, placing our position on record and reaffirming our stand on… pic.twitter.com/0JZvovFU8X
— Kalyan Banerjee (@KBanerjee_AITC) July 6, 2026
The TMC leader further alleged that the rebel faction’s June 22 “special session”, in which it claimed to have reconstituted the party organisation, violated the AITC constitution.
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As per the MP, the party constitution envisages a multi-tier organisational process beginning at the block level, followed by district and state committees, before the AITC committee can be constituted.
He said that these procedures were bypassed and that mandatory public notices and notices to MPs and MLAs were not issued.
“There was no media notification, no proper circulation and no notice to ex officio members. The alleged AITC constituted by them is a great fraud on the party constitution itself,” he said.
ECI officials said that the Ritabrata faction wrote to ECI on Monday, seeking more time to respond to the Mamata faction’s earlier letter on the working committee. “The ECI will assess the responses of both sides and then decide whether to lodge a dispute case,” an EC source said.