Representative image.
| Photo Credit: PTI
After the defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls 2026, the rival factions of Trinamool Congress are not only competing to get every leader by their side and fighting for the party symbol, but they are also trying to get control over the party’s funds. Over the past few weeks, West Bengal has witnessed two factions of Trinamool Congress — one led by Mamata Banerjee and another by Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee — approaching banks, police and courts, trying to get access to the funds. While the Ritabrata Banerjee faction has sought that funds in Trinamool Congress accounts be frozen, the Mamata Banerjee loyalists have said that rebels can have no control over party funds.
How rich is the Trinamool Congress?
Trinamool Congress is one the richest political parties in the country with hundreds of crores lying in its bank accounts.
In the 2023-24 financial year, the Trinamool Congress earned ₹646.293 crore. For the 2024-25 fiscal year, the Trinamool Congress had declared ₹ 219.3538 crore as total earnings in its income-tax returns filed on October 13, 2025. A report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) published on May 27, 2026, pointed out that the Trinamool Congress ranks second after Telugu Desam Party as the highest earners among 36 regional parties analysed by ADR. Till February 2024, when the Supreme Court announced electoral bonds as unconstitutional, Ms. Banerjee’s party had encashed ₹ 1,609.5 crore between April 2019 and January 2024, the second-largest recipient among all political parties.
When did the dispute start?
On June 3, about 58 MLAs of Trinamool Congress decided to part ways with Ms. Banerjee and supported Mr. Banerjee, who was elected Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly. Within a couple of weeks, about 10 MLAs from the Ritabrata Banerjee camp lodged a police complaint with Bidhannagar City Police alleging misuse of funds in Trinamool Congress bank accounts.
Former Minister Aroop Biswas, who was treasurer to the Trinamool Congress, also wrote to the banks flagging the split in the party’s Parliamentary and legislative wings and demanding a halt to all financial transactions in its account. Mr. Biswas, a Mamata Banerjee loyalist, was trying to warm up to the rebel camp by asking banks to freeze the accounts. The Bidhannagar City police, under whose jurisdiction the private bank operated, was directed to freeze the accounts. Funds worth ₹440 crore were frozen in the three bank accounts.
The Mamata Banerjee faction approached the Calcutta High Court. The Calcutta High Court on July 9, 2026 permitted the Trinamool Congress to operate three bank accounts, which had been frozen following a police complaint alleging fund diversion. Justice Sougata Bhattacharya appointed retired judge Justice Subrata Talukdar as special officer to supervise the accounts till September 30.
ED alleges money laundering through Trinamool accounts
Despite a de-freezing order by the Calcutta High Court, the Trinamool Congress has not been able to operate the accounts because the Enforcement Directorate in a separate order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act froze the three bank accounts of the party.
In its press statement, the ED said that the investigation revealed that around ₹160 crore was transferred from Trinamool Congress bank accounts to M/s Carewell Aviation India Pvt. Ltd. and its related entity between April 2023 to June 2026.
“It is further revealed that M/s Carewell Aviation Pvt. Ltd. routed an amount of ₹82.96 crore during 2023-2026 to another newly incorporated related entity for purchasing an aircraft Embraer Legacy 600 and one chopper Augusta 109 Grand New. An amount of ₹112 crore was used for making the said purchases. It is also revealed that an amount of $1.7 million was arranged as an unsecured loan in 2023 from one Cayman Islands-based entity to purchase the said helicopter,” the statement by the central agency said.
The Trinamool Congress faction led by Ms. Banerjee called the ED’s actions “politically motivated” and “illegal” and once again approached the Calcutta High Court. The High Court on July 13 had reserved the order in the matter. According to reports, there are 18 accounts of Trinamool Congress across several private and public banks in Kolkata.
More accounts frozen
The West Bengal Police, on June 10, 2026, froze 12 more bank accounts of the Trinamool Congress with deposits of over ₹1,000 crore, following complaints of illegal diversion of funds. The police action came on the basis of a first information report (FIR) registered on a complaint from MLA Sandipan Saha, who has now joined the Ritabrata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool. Mr. Saha has alleged illegal fund diversion from those accounts. The police have also so far recorded the statements of seven MLAs of Mr. Banerjee’s faction over alleged illegal transactions.
What lies in the future?
The fight to control Trinamool Congress is being manifested in various ways, with party leaders choosing their respective camps. Both the factions are keen to project themselves as the original Trinamool Congress by organising the annual Martyrs Day event on July 21.
While the courts will take a final call on the bank accounts, the bigger issue is who gets the party’s symbol. Both the Mamata Banerjee faction and the Ritabrata Banerjee faction have approached the Election Commission of India. The faction that will get the party funds will eventually walk away with the funds parked in Trinamool Congress accounts.
Published – July 14, 2026 11:01 am IST
