Retired Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju’s comparison of three Trinamool Congress MPs with the witches in Shakespeare’s Macbeth has triggered a sharp public exchange with Mahua Moitra, reopening old political wounds at a sensitive moment for the party after its loss of power in West Bengal.
Katju’s social media post referred to Moitra, Saayoni Ghosh and Sagarika Ghose, three of Trinamool’s prominent parliamentary voices, in language that drew immediate criticism from Moitra. She responded by accusing him of harbouring sympathy for the Bharatiya Janata Party, using a phrase commonly deployed by Trinamool leaders to attack ideological opponents. Katju then escalated the exchange by bringing up the cash-for-query case that led to Moitra’s expulsion from the Lok Sabha in December 2023.
The row comes after a major political reversal for Trinamool in West Bengal. The Bharatiya Janata Party won 207 seats while Trinamool secured 80, with results declared for 293 constituencies. The figures marked the end of Mamata Banerjee’s long rule in the state and elevated Suvendu Adhikari to the chief minister’s office, altering the balance of power in eastern politics.
Moitra remains one of Trinamool’s most combative national figures. Her return to Parliament from Krishnanagar in the 2024 Lok Sabha election had allowed her to regain political space after the cash-for-query controversy, in which she denied wrongdoing while admitting that her parliamentary login details had been shared. The Ethics Committee proceedings and her expulsion had become a rallying point for Trinamool, which framed the case as part of a wider political campaign against opposition voices.
Katju’s remarks landed in a charged atmosphere because Trinamool is already facing questions over leadership, messaging and internal discipline after its defeat. The party still has a sizeable bloc in the Assembly and a strong parliamentary presence, but the loss of state power has intensified scrutiny of its public-facing leaders. Moitra, Ghosh and Ghose have all been visible defenders of the party’s national line, particularly on issues involving federalism, central agencies and the role of the Election Commission.
The Macbeth reference added a cultural and gendered dimension to the dispute. Shakespeare’s three witches are associated with prophecy, manipulation and chaos, making Katju’s analogy especially provocative in a political context. Moitra’s supporters viewed the remark as a personal and sexist attack on three women politicians, while Katju’s defenders treated it as a caustic political aside from a public figure known for blunt commentary.
The exchange also revived the unresolved reputational burden of the cash-for-query case. Moitra’s expulsion was one of the most dramatic parliamentary disciplinary actions of the last decade, but her electoral return from Krishnanagar weakened the argument that the episode had ended her political career. For Trinamool, however, every revival of the case creates a fresh challenge, especially as the party tries to project itself as the principal opposition force in West Bengal after losing office.
Mamata Banerjee’s party now faces a dual task: retaining organisational cohesion while responding to a newly assertive government led by Adhikari. The new administration has moved quickly to signal a break from the previous regime, including steps linked to corruption probes and administrative restructuring. Trinamool, meanwhile, has accused its rivals of using institutions and investigations to weaken political opposition.
Katju’s intervention may not alter the Assembly arithmetic, but it has underlined how the post-election contest is shifting from polling booths to public narrative. Trinamool’s strongest speakers are likely to remain central to that fight, even as their opponents seek to turn past controversies into recurring lines of attack.
