Election Commission Allots Football Player Symbol to Mamata Banerjee Faction, Envelope Symbol to Arup Roy Faction on September 18 After Freezing TMC Name

The Election Commission on September 18 approved new names and symbols for the two rival Trinamool Congress factions ahead of West Bengal bypolls on October 6, after freezing the All India Trinamool Congress name and its Jora Ghash Phul (two flowers with grass) symbol on September 17. Mamata Banerjee's faction has been allotted the name Mamata All India Trinamool Congress and the Football Player symbol, to be treated as a recognised political party in West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura. The Arup Roy-led faction has been given the name Democratic Trinamool Congress and the Envelope symbol. The freeze came after both groups claimed to be the real party, requiring detailed examination under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968. The bypolls are scheduled for Nandigram in East Medinipur district and Rejinagar in Murshidabad district on October 6, with vote counting on October 9. The Commission said the temporary arrangement was based on earlier cases and was intended to keep both sides on an even keel while the dispute is examined. This is a significant blow to Mamata Banerjee, as the hand-drawn flowers and grass symbol had been central to TMC's identity since its formation in 1998 after breaking away from Congress. The split traces back to June 2026 when 58 rebel MLAs elected expelled leader Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of Opposition in the Bengal Assembly instead of Mamata's nominee Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, and 20 Lok Sabha MPs led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar wrote to Speaker Om Birla backing the BJP-led NDA, deepening the rupture. The upcoming bypolls will serve as the first electoral test of the two factions' relative strength under their new identities.