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Mamata’s Most Trusted Aide Sudip Bandyopadhyay May Join Camp of Rebel Trinamool MPs
The rebel group claims support from 19 Lok Sabha MPs and plans to seek Speaker recognition as a separate bloc aligned with the BJP-led NDA.
On Saturday, June 13, 2026, veteran Trinamool Congress MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay joined the party's rebel faction, meeting Union Minister Bhupender Yadav and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi.
This rebellion, intensifying since the West Bengal assembly election defeat, involves 19 Lok Sabha MPs expressing dissatisfaction with the leadership of Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee.
Rebel MPs plan to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday, June 15, 2026, to request recognition as a separate parliamentary bloc sitting alongside the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
Citing the Constitution's 91st Amendment, TMC MP Mahua Moitra argued that lawmakers seeking to leave a party must merge with another to avoid disqualification, dismissing the rebels' claim.
TMC MP Kirti Azad alleged the BJP is engineering defections through "Operation Lotus," which he claimed is "under the guidance of Amit Shah.