Mamata Banerjee: BJP excesses will bring Trinamool back to power in Bengal
Synopsis
At the TMCP foundation day in Kolkata, Mamata Banerjee publicly declared she will no longer seek court permission for rallies and will 'walk for miles' if needed — a combative shift in posture for an opposition leader who once ran the state. Abhishek Banerjee's branding of 20 former Trinamool MPs as 'traitors' signals the party is drawing hard internal lines ahead of the next Bengal assembly election.
Key Takeaways
Mamata Banerjee declared at a central Kolkata event on 28 August that BJP excesses would ensure Trinamool's return to power in West Bengal .
She accused the BJP -led state administration of using police to block Trinamool meetings and rallies as political vendetta.
Banerjee said she would no longer approach the Calcutta High Court for permission to hold programmes, vowing to 'walk for miles' if necessary.
Abhishek Banerjee labelled 20 former Trinamool Lok Sabha members who joined the NCPI as 'traitors' and urged Mamata not to take them back.
The Camac Street billboard row — involving alleged illegal removal of Trinamool signage by Kolkata Police — added to the day's political tensions.
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday, 28 August declared that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s alleged excesses in the state would accelerate the return of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) to power. She made the remarks at a gathering in central Kolkata during the foundation day celebration of the party's student wing, Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP).
Mamata's Warning to the BJP
'Do not work. The ordinary BJP supporters will teach their own party leadership a lesson soon. Very soon Trinamool Congress will return to power in West Bengal,' Banerjee said, addressing party workers and students at the event.
She also accused the BJP-led state administration of deploying police to block Trinamool from holding public meetings and rallies — a move she described as politically motivated. 'The police are not permitting us to hold meetings and rallies,' she said, adding that she would no longer seek the Calcutta High Court's permission for programmes. 'I will hold a programme with the permission of the people. If necessary, I will walk for miles,' she asserted.
Abhishek Banerjee Targets Internal Rebels and BJP
Trinamool Congress General Secretary and Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha member Abhishek Banerjee — also Mamata Banerjee's nephew — also addressed the gathering. He trained his fire on what he called a 'rebel but majority' faction within Trinamool, led by expelled legislator Ritabrata Banerjee, as well as 20 former Trinamool Lok Sabha members who recently joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).
'They are traitors. I will request our supreme leader Mamata Banerjee not to take them back to Trinamool in future,' Abhishek said.
Billboard Row Escalates Tensions
Abhishek also referenced a flashpoint from the previous day, when a billboard and signboard were removed from the Trinamool party office on Camac Street in central Kolkata. He alleged the removal was illegal and involved a large-scale police deployment.
'Yesterday, they illegally removed the billboard and signboard of our party office. The entire Kolkata Police were deployed for that. I will tell the BJP to do as much violence as can be tolerated,' the Diamond Harbour MP said.
What This Signals for Bengal Politics
The remarks at the TMCP foundation day mark a notable hardening of Trinamool's posture since losing the state government. This is the first major public event where both Mamata and Abhishek Banerjee jointly signalled a ground-level electoral mobilisation drive, targeting both the BJP administration and internal party dissenters. The reference to district-level programmes suggests Trinamool is preparing for a sustained political campaign rather than a one-off rally. With the next state assembly elections on the horizon, the contest between a ruling BJP and a regrouping Trinamool is set to intensify across Bengal's districts.
Point of View
Where Trinamool has historically been stronger. The branding of 20 former Lok Sabha members as permanent outcasts by Abhishek Banerjee is equally significant: it closes the door on a potential reunification that could have strengthened the party numerically. What mainstream coverage misses is that the TMCP foundation day was less about student politics and more about launching a dual-front war — against the BJP administration and against internal fragmentation. Whether Trinamool can convert rhetorical combativeness into organisational ground presence in Bengal's districts will determine if this is a genuine comeback arc or political theatre.
NationPress
28 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Mamata Banerjee say about BJP at the TMCP foundation day?
Mamata Banerjee said the excesses of the BJP-led state government in West Bengal would ensure Trinamool Congress returns to power. She accused the administration of deploying police to block Trinamool's public meetings and rallies as political vendetta.
What is the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP)?
The Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) is the student wing of the All India Trinamool Congress. Its foundation day celebration in central Kolkata on 28 August was the occasion at which both Mamata and Abhishek Banerjee made their remarks.
Why did Mamata Banerjee say she will not approach the Calcutta High Court for permission?
Banerjee said the BJP-controlled police were refusing permission for Trinamool meetings, and she would no longer 'waste the court's time' seeking legal clearance. She vowed instead to hold programmes with 'the permission of the people' and travel to districts on foot if necessary.
Who are the 20 former Trinamool members Abhishek Banerjee called traitors?
Abhishek Banerjee referred to 20 erstwhile Trinamool Lok Sabha members who recently joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), a party he described as 'virtually non-existent'. He urged Mamata Banerjee not to accept them back into Trinamool.
What was the Camac Street billboard row about?
Abhishek Banerjee alleged that Kolkata Police illegally removed a billboard and signboard from Trinamool's party office on Camac Street in central Kolkata on 27 August, claiming a large-scale police deployment was used for the operation.
