ECI Freezes TMC Name, Symbol; Mamata Faction Gets Football Player, Arup Roy Camp Envelope

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday allotted new names and symbols to the rival factions of the Trinamool Congress led by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Arup Roy, a day after barring both groups from using the party's name "All India Trinamool Congress" and its "Flowers and Grass" symbol ahead of the October 6 bypolls.

The group led by Mamata Banerjee has been allotted the name "Mamata All India Trinamool Congress" and the "Football Player" symbol and will be treated as a recognised political party in West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura.

The group led by Arup Roy has been allotted the name "Democratic Trinamool Congress" and the "Envelope" symbol and will also be treated as a recognised political party in West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura.

The development comes after the ECI passed an interim order on Thursday barring both rival factions from using the name "All India Trinamool Congress" or the party's "Flowers and Grass" symbol until the leadership dispute is finally resolved.

"Neither of the two groups led by Shri Arup Roy (Petitioner) and the other led by Ms Mamata Banerjee (Respondent) shall be permitted to use the name of the party 'All India Trinamool Congress '," the ECI said in its order.

The Commission also barred both groups from using the "Flowers and Grass" symbol reserved for the party and directed them to submit three preferred names and three free symbols for the upcoming bypolls.

Reacting to the development, Congress spokesperson Mita Chakraborty said the Congress has consistently opposed what she described as corruption and misgovernance by the TMC. She also criticised the developments surrounding political parties and their symbols.

“Congress has always protested and fought against the corruption and misgovernance of the TMC. Having said that, in any multi-party democratic setup, we first saw vote theft, then MLAs being bought, and now we are seeing entire parties being stolen. First, this happened with Shiv Sena, then with the NCP, and now it is happening with the Trinamool Congress,” Chakraborty said.

The order followed a hearing on Thursday at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi, where the ECI heard the rival factions after seeking their final submissions. The interim arrangement will remain in place until the dispute over the party's organisational control and identity is finally resolved.

West Bengal Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee on Friday invoked the values of democracy amid an ongoing dispute between two factions of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) over the party's name, organisational control and election symbol ahead of the October 6 by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar.

In a post on X, Banerjee wrote, "Politics is a permanent war; a war at every hour; a war at every minute; a war at every second - a war that changes interests, needs and priorities. Long live the eternal ideas & values of Democracy enshrined in India’s Constitution."

The dispute comes ahead of the October 6 by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar, for which both factions have fielded candidates while staking claim to the TMC's traditional symbol.

The Nandigram seat fell vacant after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who retained Bhabanipur after defeating Mamata Banerjee there in the 2026 Assembly elections, vacated it.

The Rejinagar seat fell vacant following the resignation of Aam Janata Unnayan Party founder Humayun Kabir, who had also won from Nowda. The Mamata faction has named Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) and Rabiul Alam Chowdhury as candidates from Nandigram and Rejinagar.

Polling for the two seats is scheduled for October 6, while counting will take place on October 9.