Biswajit Deb, a senior All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and Advocate General of Mizoram, on Friday, 29 May delivered a scathing internal critique of the party's performance in West Bengal, asserting that had the Lok Sabha elections been held after the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape and murder controversy, the TMC would not have secured even nine seats. His remarks represent one of the sharpest public dissections of the party's electoral setback by a sitting insider.

Three Factors Behind the Defeat

Deb identified three root causes for the TMC's poor showing: rampant corruption, the role of political consultancy I-PAC, and the fallout from the RG Kar incident. 'First is rampant corruption, second is I-PAC, and third is the RG Kar issue. If the parliamentary elections had been held after the RG Kar issue, forget about 29 seats, the TMC would not have been able to win even nine seats,' he said.

He pointed to a pattern of governance failures — arrests of MPs and MLAs, re-nomination of accused individuals before judicial clearance, and the loss of jobs for around 26,000 teachers — as evidence of a leadership that had lost touch with public sentiment. 'People did not like this; they were disgusted,' Deb said.

RG Kar Case and Mamata Banerjee's Response

Deb singled out the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital as the most consequential issue. He argued that Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee 'was unable to read the writing on the wall' and failed to meet the public demand of swiftly putting the accused behind bars, triggering massive protests across India. This comes amid sustained public anger over the case that had already drawn national attention and street demonstrations well before election season.

Abhishek Banerjee, I-PAC, and the Communication Breakdown

The veteran leader also blamed Trinamool General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee's 'pride' and public statements for alienating voters, and accused I-PAC of 'misleading' the party leadership. According to Deb, I-PAC functioned as the sole channel of communication between the top leadership and ground-level workers — a structural flaw that he says caused a near-total disconnect. He further alleged that I-PAC demanded money from TMC workers in exchange for nominations to the Assembly or the Lok Sabha, though these remain allegations and have not been independently verified.

'Mamata Banerjee depended too much on Abhishek Banerjee, and he, in turn, tried to turn the party into a corporate entity. A political party cannot function like a corporate organisation,' Deb stated. He stressed that grassroots workers were 'neither recognised nor given proper respect,' which he said caused the party to lose control at the ground level.

Polarisation and the 2026 Warning

Deb also flagged communal polarisation as a significant electoral factor. He argued that the manner in which Mamata Banerjee 'tried to polarise one section of the community' was 'very dangerous,' adding that it united 'Sanatani Hindus' who feared being compelled to leave Bengal if the TMC returned to power in 2026. Notably, the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections are already being viewed as a critical test for the ruling party.

Deb's Own Next Move

When asked whether he intended to quit the TMC, Deb stopped short of confirming a departure. 'I am just trying to highlight the reasons for the humiliating defeat of the Trinamool Congress. With regard to quitting or not, I will take a call in the next two days,' he said. His choice of words — 'humiliating defeat' — underscores the depth of dissatisfaction within sections of the party. Whether his critique signals a formal break or an internal pressure campaign will become clearer in the coming days.