Bengal Assembly Speaker Recognises Faction Of Trinamool MLAs As Opposition
Ritabrata Banerjee, who has been elected the Opposition leader with the support of 58 legislators, expressed his desire for Mamata Banerjee to become chief advisor.
Published : June 3, 2026 at 1:56 PM IST
|Updated : June 3, 2026 at 7:58 PM IST
Kolkata: In a dramatic development, the Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on Wednesday formally accepted the letter submitted by 58 rebel MLAs of the Trinamool Congress by officially recognising them as the opposition party.
Immediately after Rathindranath Bose's approval, Assembly secretary Soumendranath Das handed over the keys to the designated office to Ritabrata Banerjee, who has been elected as the Leader of the Opposition. The internal rift within the ruling party — coupled with the emergence of an entirely new opposition bloc within the Assembly — has created a significant stir across the state's political landscape.
In a press conference at the Assembly, Banerjee said that while they currently hold the written consent of 58 MLAs, two additional legislators have also pledged their full support. "It would be reasonable to consider our total strength to be 60 members. The number of legislators in our camp could potentially increase further in the days to come," he added.
While Javed Khan, Sabina Yasmin, Sandipan Saha, and Shiuli Saha were made deputy leaders, Akheruzzaman will be the chief whip.
Banerjee said as a highly responsible opposition, they would strongly oppose any government measures deemed contrary to the public interest or perceived as erroneous. "Our opposition would not be merely for the sake of opposition. Rather, we would extend full support to any constructive initiatives undertaken by the government. All decisions would be arrived at through internal consultations and in strict adherence to parliamentary norms and traditions," he added.
Asked about party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, Ritabrata said Abhishek has absolutely no connection — not even a remote one — with this Legislative Assembly. However, they expressed their desire to have Mamata serve as their principal advisor.
"Mamata Banerjee remains our undisputed leader. Let there be no room for doubt in anyone's mind that we remain, to this day, legislators of the Trinamool Congress," Akhruzzaman said.
Venting his frustration over the intense internal strife that had been brewing for quite some time surrounding the election of the Leader of the Opposition, Akhruzzaman alleged that despite being summoned to Kalighat on two separate occasions, their opinions were accorded absolutely no weight in the selection process. He further claimed that the signatures of party legislators were forged under the guise of a resolution.
"We remain within the Trinamool Congress. Our slogan is 'Trinamool Congress zindabad'. We will fight against the BJP. We will work for the development of the people. The party was unable to resolve the issue regarding the Leader of the Opposition, and we have provided the solution. Our leader is Mamata Banerjee. I would urge our leader to offer us her counsel," MLA Shiuli Saha said.
Political observers believe Ritabrata Banerjee, Uluberia Uttar MLA, is the key orchestrator of the entire episode, reportedly assisted by Sandipan Saha — the MLA for Entally and son of former Trinamool MLA Swarnakamal Saha.
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