Kolkata, Sep 13 (PTI) The Trinamool Congress faction led by Mamata Banerjee on Sunday announced that Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) and Rabiul Alam Chowdhury are its candidates for the October 6 bypolls to Nandigram and Rejinagar assembly seats in West Bengal.
Sanchita is a new face, while Rabiul is a former MLA.
However, the rival faction led by Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal assembly Ritabrata Banerjee is yet to announce its nominees.
The by-elections were necessitated after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari vacated the Nandigram seat in Purba Medinipur district, while AJUP founder Humayun Kabir did the same for Rejinagar in Murshidabad.
“All India Trinamool Congress, under the guidance and inspiration of our Hon’ble Chairperson Smt @MamataOfficial, is pleased to announce the candidates for the upcoming Nandigram & Rejinagar by-elections,” the party said on X.
The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC also said, “We wish Smt Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) and Shri Rabiul Alam Chowdhury the very best for this journey. May they carry forward the hopes and aspirations of the people with strength and determination.” The announcement comes a day after the Election Commission heard representatives of the two rival TMC camps over their competing claims to the party’s name, organisational control, assets and the ‘Jora Ghash Phool’ (twin flowers on grass) election symbol.
The TMC suffered an unprecedented split in the wake of its defeat in the 2026 West Bengal assembly elections.
The Mamata Banerjee-led camp has maintained that it is the legitimate Trinamool Congress, with the party’s existing organisational committees continuing to remain valid under its constitution.
The rebel camp, headed by Ritabrata Banerjee, has claimed the support of a majority of the newly elected TMC MLAs and sought recognition as the real TMC along with control of its name and election symbol.
On Saturday, separate five-member delegations of the two factions appeared before the EC in New Delhi.
The outcome of the EC proceedings assumes immediate significance because the nomination process for the October 6 bypolls is already underway and the last date for filing nominations is September 16.
Both factions had earlier indicated that they intended to contest the bypolls using the TMC name and the symbol. The Ritabrata camp also said it would be prepared to contest as independents if the dispute remains unresolved before the nomination deadline.
Following Saturday’s hearing, the possibility of an interim arrangement, including freezing the existing party name and symbol and allotting temporary names and symbols to the two factions for the bypolls, has emerged. The commission is yet to announce its final decision.
The bypolls are expected to provide the first electoral test of the two rival claimants to the TMC after the party’s split, with the EC’s decision on the name and symbol likely to have a direct bearing on the contest.
The counting will take place on October 9. PTI SUS BDC
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