Trinamool Congress factions battle with lakhs of affidavits before Election Commission

Rival factions of the Trinamool Congress are locked in a fierce paper war, filing lakhs of affidavits before the Election Commission of India to claim the party name, symbol, and funds.

Police Claims and Truck Attack

Mamata Banerjee's faction has written to the Director General of Police and the Kolkata Police Commissioner, alleging that the ruling BJP is misusing police to collect dummy affidavits for the rival group. Dola Sen, a Rajya Sabha MP for the Mamata faction, claimed that police stations were directed to gather over six lakh affidavits for the dissident group. Meanwhile, the rebel faction, called the Democratic Trinamool Congress and led by Ritabrata Banerjee, claimed a truck carrying its documents from Kolkata to New Delhi was targeted near the Haryana-Delhi border on October 24. Ritabrata stated that armed individuals forced their way into the vehicle and drove it away before party workers managed to recover it, while Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee questioned why a truck from Kolkata to Delhi took a route through Haryana.

Background and ECI Action

The Election Commission froze the use of the All India Trinamool Congress name and symbol on September 17 following the party split after the Assembly elections. The poll panel allotted separate names and symbols for the October 6 bypolls, giving the Mamata faction the name 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and a 'football player' symbol, and the rebel group the name 'Democratic Trinamool Congress' and an 'envelope' symbol. The ECI informed the Supreme Court that verifying lakhs of affidavits would take at least six months, prompting the court to suggest using artificial intelligence tools to speed up the process.

Context

Disputes over party symbols and names often arise following major splits in Indian political parties, with the Election Commission relying on numerical strength and affidavits to determine the legitimate faction. Similar massive paper submissions have previously occurred during splits in parties like the AIADMK, Shiv Sena, and NCP. The process requires extensive verification of worker details, voter IDs, and declarations of political allegiance.