Bharatiya Janata Party leader and West Bengal's Panchayat Affairs and Rural Development Minister Dilip Ghosh on Sunday, 11 October 2026, declared that All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has travelled to New Delhi purely to remain visible in national politics — after being, in his words, comprehensively rejected by the people of West Bengal. Ghosh, who also served as the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national vice-president and state president, made the remarks while speaking to reporters in Kolkata.

Ghosh's Core Charge Against Mamata

Dilip Ghosh pointed to the recent bypolls to two Assembly constituencies in West Bengal as evidence of the TMC's collapse. He claimed the combined vote share of both factions of the Trinamool Congress in those contests had fallen below three per cent, calling the party 'non-existent' in its home state.

'She and her party, Trinamool Congress, have been completely rejected by the people of West Bengal. The combined vote share of the two factions of Trinamool Congress in the recently concluded bypolls to two Assembly constituencies in West Bengal has been less than three per cent. Trinamool Congress is non-existent in West Bengal. So, she has gone to New Delhi to keep herself relevant in the media. She should now go to neighbouring Bangladesh and join any movement there to keep herself more relevant. But still her party will never benefit,' Ghosh said.

Attack on the CJP Protest and Alleged Foreign Funding

Ghosh also levelled a sharp attack against the ongoing protest in New Delhi by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) — a demonstration demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar — which Mamata Banerjee has been publicly supporting. He alleged that the movement was backed by foreign funds and driven by forces he described as 'anti-national.'

'There is foreign funding behind this movement. A conspiracy by the anti-national forces is behind this movement. The government has done the right thing in taking action in the larger interest of the country and its people,' Ghosh said. He did not provide specifics for either claim.

Samik Bhattacharya Joins the Chorus

Ghosh is not alone in this line of attack. A day earlier on Saturday, BJP's current West Bengal state president and Rajya Sabha member Samik Bhattacharya — without directly naming the Congress or the Mamata-led TMC faction — described a 'half-dead' political force joining hands with a 'dead' force to stay relevant through the CJP movement.

Bhattacharya also pointed to the timing of Mamata Banerjee's Delhi visit, noting it coincided with the auspicious occasion of Mahalaya, a culturally significant day ahead of Durga Puja in West Bengal. 'On the occasion of Mahalaya today, the former West Bengal Chief Minister has gone to New Delhi instead of staying in the state. We want her to stay here during this festivity time and visit various puja pandals. We want to see her doing that. Where have all the big Trinamool Congress leaders gone?' he asked.

The Broader Political Context

This comes amid growing pressure on the Trinamool Congress to consolidate its position both within West Bengal and at the national level. Mamata Banerjee's participation in the CJP-led protest signals an attempt to embed the TMC in a broader Opposition coalition, particularly on electoral integrity issues. Critics within the BJP argue this is a strategic distraction from a weakening home base. How the TMC responds to these attacks — and whether Mamata's Delhi outreach yields tangible Opposition solidarity — will shape the party's trajectory in the months ahead.