Supreme Court Sets October 8 Deadline for West Bengal Speaker on Rebel TMC MLAs

West Bengal assembly speaker Rathindra Nath Bose must decide on disqualification pleas against 10 rebel legislators by October 8, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday.

Background

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant stated that a 2020 court decision requires a speaker to resolve such petitions within three months. The petitions against the rebel MLAs, led by rival faction leader Ritabrata Banerjee, were filed on July 8 by Trinamool Congress leader Sohandeb Chattopadhyay. The bench, which also included justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, disposed of the TMC petition based on the six-year-old verdict, noting it expected the speaker to follow this timeline. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal represented Chattopadhyay and urged the court to keep the matter pending, but the bench declined the request.

Political Crisis

The internal party dispute began after the TMC lost the 2026 West Bengal assembly elections, ending 15 years of rule by Mamata Banerjee. Following the defeat, around 58 newly elected MLAs broke away to name Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of Opposition while calling themselves the real TMC. The party subsequently expelled Ritabrata Banerjee and MLA Sandipan Saha for anti-party activities. Alongside this case, TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee filed a separate petition in the top court seeking fast decisions on disqualification pleas for 20 rebel Members of Parliament pending before the Lok Sabha Speaker.

Context

Speaker decisions on anti-defection and disqualification petitions often face legal scrutiny over delays. Courts step in when timelines are stretched, using established precedents to guide legislative authorities on deciding party rebellion cases.