Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has accused dissident party lawmakers backing the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance of betraying voters, turning a deepening parliamentary revolt into a public test of loyalty for Mamata Banerjee’s party.
Moitra’s attack on Monday came after a group of Trinamool Lok Sabha MPs, led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, moved to declare support for the NDA and sought recognition as a separate bloc in Parliament. The rebellion threatens to weaken Trinamool’s position in the Lok Sabha at a time when the party is already under pressure after its loss of power in West Bengal.
The Krishnanagar MP said the dissident lawmakers had been elected in 2024 on Trinamool tickets and had no mandate to align with the NDA. She challenged them to resign, join the BJP if they wished, and seek a fresh verdict from voters on a BJP ticket. Her remarks reflected the party leadership’s central argument: that parliamentary arithmetic cannot override the electoral mandate under which MPs entered the House.
Moitra used unusually sharp language, calling the rebel MPs “greedy” and “self-serving traitors”. She also singled out Yusuf Pathan, the former cricketer and Trinamool MP from Baharampur, questioning reports that he was travelling to Delhi amid the political churn. Pathan won the Baharampur seat in 2024 by defeating long-time Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a result that had been seen as one of Trinamool’s most symbolic victories in that election.
The dissident bloc’s move has placed Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar at the centre of the crisis. She has claimed that nearly 20 Trinamool MPs are prepared to support the NDA and that their decision reflects a changed political reality after the party’s setback in West Bengal. The group’s reported communication to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is aimed at formalising its parliamentary position without immediately resigning from Trinamool or joining the BJP.
The numbers are central to the dispute. Trinamool won 29 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 general election, emerging as one of the strongest opposition parties in the House. Its current Lok Sabha strength has been reported at 28, following a vacancy caused by the death of Basirhat MP Haji Nurul Islam. If about 20 MPs stand together, the rebel group would cross the two-thirds mark that is often cited in disputes under the Tenth Schedule, which governs defections.
The anti-defection framework allows disqualification when a legislator voluntarily gives up party membership or defies a party direction on voting. It also contains a merger exception when at least two-thirds of a legislature party agrees to merge with another political party. Any attempt by the dissident MPs to claim protection under that provision is likely to face scrutiny over whether a parliamentary group alone can claim such a merger without the original party organisation endorsing it.
Trinamool’s internal response has been shaped by the fear that the rebellion could erode its national standing as much as its numerical strength. Mamata Banerjee built the party’s authority around a disciplined command structure, a strong regional identity, and resistance to BJP expansion in West Bengal. A breakaway bloc in Parliament would challenge that model by showing that a section of MPs is willing to reposition itself after the state verdict.
For the NDA, support from Trinamool rebels would strengthen its working majority and carry symbolic value beyond numbers. It would signal that the BJP’s victory in West Bengal has begun to reshape opposition alignments at the national level. The BJP has not needed Trinamool support to remain in office, but parliamentary backing from a breakaway group would reinforce the perception of a shifting balance after the state election.
The crisis also raises difficult questions for voters in constituencies represented by the dissident MPs. Moitra’s demand for resignation is rooted in the argument that voters chose candidates under a party banner and should be allowed to decide again if those MPs change political direction. Rebel lawmakers, by contrast, are expected to argue that they remain elected representatives with the right to decide their parliamentary course in line with changed circumstances.
