Rivalry among TMC factions in focus as parties gear up for Bengal civic polls

Rivalries among factions within the Mamata All India Trinamool Congress (MAITC), the Democratic Trinamool Congress (DTC), and those Trinamool MPs who have joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) are heating up ahead of the municipal elections in Kolkata and Howrah in November. Parties expect to issue poll notifications within days, leaving little time for finalizing candidates and campaigns.

Mamata Banerjee's loyalists in the MAITC are expected to be favored during candidate selection, with potential discussions about seat adjustments with the Congress if necessary. However, there is no confirmed lobbying on this issue yet, according to a source from the MAITC camp.

While the Congress state committees typically choose municipal poll nominees, central leaders, including Mamata Banerjee, have the final say on alliances. The NCPI, a self-proclaimed ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government, has faced criticism from the MAITC. Kunal Ghosh, an MLA from the MAITC faction, posted a photo of graffiti in Shyambazar where the face of Kolkata North Lok Sabha member Sudip Bandopadhyay, who defected to the NCPI, was blackened.

The graffiti remained untouched with images of Union home minister Amit Shah and state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya.

The DTC, led by Ritabrata Banerjee, has ruled out any alliance with the NCPI, stating, "We are the real Trinamool. We will contest on our own." After a party meeting, DTC president Arup Roy affirmed this stance.

In October, 20 former Trinamool MPs in the NCPI requested more time to reply to petitions seeking their disqualification from the Lok Sabha. The BJP, which controls 209 of Bengal’s 294 Assembly seats, convened its first preparatory meeting in Kolkata on Friday. The BJP’s election committee leader, Sukanta Majumdar, stated that candidates will be chosen based on their performance, and non-TRCP members will not be considered for the polls. Majumdar also barred Trinamool councillors who switched parties from contesting the elections.

Both Kolkata and Howrah municipalities are currently managed by state-appointed administrators. After the Trinamool's defeat in the Assembly polls in May, Trinamool councillors and the mayor resigned from their posts in Kolkata. The Howrah Municipal Corporation has not held an election since 2018 due to delimitation rule complications.

In August, the West Bengal Legislative Assembly approved two bills to increase the number of civic wards in Kolkata from 144 to 209 and in Howrah from 50 to 68. The addition of smaller wards aims to expedite the delivery of civic services to citizens.