The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday, 17 September 2026, ordered the freezing of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) party name and election symbol for both rival factions — temporarily barring either side from using them in any election until the Commission delivers a final ruling. The order, released Thursday night, follows a meeting between the full ECI bench and five-member delegations from both factions at the Commission's headquarters in New Delhi.

The Two Factions at a Glance

The dispute pits two sharply contrasting camps against each other. The first is described in the ECI order as the 'original but minority' faction, led by former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee. The second is the 'rebel but majority' faction, helmed by expelled party legislator Ritabrata Banerjee. Both sides have staked claim to the party's name and its widely recognised symbol, setting up one of the most consequential intra-party disputes in Bengal's recent political history.

Impact on Upcoming By-Elections

The freeze carries immediate electoral consequences. Neither faction can use the TMC name or symbol in the forthcoming by-elections for Nandigram assembly constituency in East Midnapore district and Rejinagar assembly constituency in Murshidabad district, both scheduled for 6 October, with results to be declared on 9 October. The timing is particularly tight: the last date for nominations for both seats was 16 September — the day before the ECI's order — and the scrutiny of nominations filed by candidates from both factions was reportedly kept on hold until Friday afternoon.

The 11 AM Deadline and What It Means

Under the ECI order, both factions must inform the Commission of their freshly chosen party names and symbols by 11 a.m. on Friday, 18 September. Failure to do so within that window would disqualify both factions from contesting the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls entirely. The compressed timeline — less than 24 hours after the order — has drawn sharp reactions from both camps.

Reactions from Both Sides

Kalyan Banerjee, a four-time Lok Sabha member and the most prominent legal and political voice of the Mamata Banerjee-led faction, called the order 'unconstitutional' and said his faction was not accepting it. 'We will do whatever is required now. But as of now, if we have to choose a symbol, we have that till 11 a.m. on Friday. We are not accepting this order. Just as illegal things have to be accepted temporarily, this too has to be accepted,' he told reporters. In contrast, Akhruzzaman, TMC's official Chief Whip in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, welcomed the decision. 'We are confident that finally, we will have the right over the party name and symbol,' he said.

What Comes Next

The ECI's freeze is an interim measure pending a final determination of which faction holds the legitimate claim to the Trinamool Congress name and symbol — a process that could take weeks or longer. The Nandigram and Rejinagar by-elections will serve as an early stress test of how the two factions perform under new, hastily adopted identities. How each side manoeuvres before the Friday morning deadline will likely shape both the electoral outcome and the broader intra-party battle ahead.