New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday, 17 September 2026, issued an interim order barring both rival factions of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) from using the official party name and its reserved "twin-flowers-on-grass" election symbol in the upcoming West Bengal Assembly bypolls. The directive comes ahead of the by-elections for the Nandigram and Rejinagar assembly seats, where both rival camps had fielded competing candidates claiming sole entitlement to the established TMC banner. To prevent voter confusion and maintain neutral polling conditions during the election process, the poll panel decided to freeze the party identity pending final adjudication of the leadership dispute.

Directives on Alternative Names and Symbols

Under the terms of the interim order, the poll panel instructed both factions, one led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the rival group headed by Ritabrata Banerjee, to adopt alternative temporary names and choose symbols from the ECI's list of notified free symbols. The Election Commission directed both camps to submit three preferred party names alongside three symbol choices, ranked in order of priority, by Friday morning. Once received, the Commission will allocate distinct names and symbols to each faction to enable their respective candidates to contest the bypolls.

Dispute Background and Precedent

The legal battle over the party's identity flared in June when the Ritabrata Banerjee-led faction convened a separate meeting, claiming that the existing National Working Committee had completed its constitutional tenure and failed to hold fresh organisational elections. Both groups subsequently submitted documentation to the ECI, each asserting that it represented the legitimate organisational structure of the TMC.