Trinamool’s minority cell secretary Ajmal Siddiqui resigns, blames Abhishek Banerjee for party ‘collapse’

Trinamool Congress (TMC) State minority cell secretary Ajmal Siddiqui on Saturday (June 6, 2026) announced his resignation from the party, squarely blaming Abhishek Banerjee for what he describes as the party’s ongoing collapse.

Speaking to ANI, Mr. Siddiqui stated that his decision to quit was driven by the party’s internal culture and the influence of its leadership.

“The party is collapsing today solely because of one man: Abhishek Banerjee. His dictatorial attitude and the oppression we faced — false cases filed against us 12 or 13 years ago, demands for money — were unbearable,” Mr. Siddiqui said.

Reflecting on his time within the TMC, Mr. Siddiqui claimed that the organisation has shifted away from serving the public. “I returned from the Hajj pilgrimage just two days ago. Upon my return, I decided that this party brings nothing but disrepute; the majority of its members are involved in unsavoury activities — scandals keep surfacing, and more will likely emerge. Staying in this party felt very uncomfortable for us, and it wasn’t doing any real work for the people,” he explained.

He further characterised the party’s internal structure as merit-averse, alleging that genuine effort is overshadowed by sycophancy. “It is a party in name only; you cannot accomplish anything meaningful within it. Only those who have risen through sycophancy thrive there. So, after returning, I decided it was best to resign,” Mr. Siddiqui added.

When asked about his future political path and whether he intends to seek a role within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Mr. Siddiqui emphasised that his immediate focus remains on regional development. “We haven’t thought about that yet. Our only desire is to see development in Bengal — industries established and jobs provided to the poor…”

The development comes amid the backdrop of heightened political turbulence within the TMC following claims by a group of rebel MLAs, including expelled party leaders Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha, who have said they have the backing of 58 legislators in the West Bengal Assembly, and rejected the party leadership’s choice of Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay for the post of Leader of Opposition (LoP).

Ritabrata Banerjee later claimed that the faction had been “accepted as the principal opposition” in the 18th West Bengal Legislative Assembly and that the Speaker had acknowledged “our claim”.

“This two-thirds strong legislative team of the Trinamool Congress inside the 18th West Bengal Legislative Assembly does not believe in ‘I’, it believes in ‘we’. Whatever norms are framed out, we have followed every norm, and that’s why we have been accepted as the principal opposition in the 18th West Bengal Legislative Assembly,” he said.

“We want Mamata Banerjee to be our chief advisor, to give us advice that will help us in strengthening our position as the opposition. Eighty members were elected by the Trinamool Congress symbol. More than two-thirds of them have given our claim, and the claim has been accepted,” he added.