Former West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee will not contest the upcoming Nandigram Assembly bypoll, with the party announcing its nominees for two seats on Sunday.

The TMC has fielded Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) from Nandigram and Rabiul Alam Chowdhury from Rejinagar, ending speculation that Banerjee could return to the Assembly through the Nandigram contest.

The development comes a day after the rebel TMC faction had said it would stay out of the Nandigram race if Banerjee chose to contest, while urging her to fight from the seat.

Banerjee could now remain outside the West Bengal Assembly for the first time in 15 years.

The Nandigram seat became vacant after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the 2026 Assembly polls, opted to retain Bhabanipur and resigned from Nandigram.

Adhikari had defeated Banerjee in Nandigram in 2021 and later won Bhabanipur against her in 2026.

The Election Commission has fixed October 6 for polling in the two constituencies, with votes scheduled to be counted on October 9.

The TMC is also facing an internal organisational dispute, with the Banerjee-led faction and the rebel group led by Ritabrata Banerjee separately approaching the poll panel and staking claims to the party’s name and twin-flower symbol.

The Election Commission heard both sides on September 12 and sought further documents from the rebel faction.

The dispute remains pending, with September 16 set as the deadline for filing nominations.