Fissures in TMC: Barasat MP and Mamata's close aide Kakoli Ghosh resigns from key party posts

Kolkata:

In a major setback to the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Mamata Banerjee’s close aide and Barasat MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar has resigned from all party positions. This came after Banerjee removed Dastidar as chief whip of the TMC parliamentary party, giving the key responsibility to senior MP Kalyan Banerjee.

Notably, Dastidar had strongly rebuked political consultancy i-PAC, holding it responsible for TMC’s poll debacle. She alleged that the people of the election strategy firm were rude with party workers.

"In the 2026 elections, the responsibility for managing the campaign lay with an external agency—iPAC. They lacked the experience of fighting elections, unlike us, who have contested several elections... Their general working methodology was flawed, and they behaved rudely toward our party workers. They treated people poorly, and their arrogance grew to such an extent that they eventually began treating us badly as well. They seemed to think they were at a higher authority than even the Prime Minister,” she said. 

Dastidar cites moral grounds

On her resignation as TMC president of the Barasat Parliamentary district, Dastidar said she had taken the responsibility for the party's poor performance and the decision was taken on moral grounds.

"When someone serves as the President or Chairperson of an organisation, the primary responsibility for its functioning and outcomes usually rests upon them. I fail to live up to this responsibility—specifically, we lose 5 out of the 7 assembly segments; that is precisely why, acting on moral grounds, I stepped down from the post," she added.  

Dastidar wrote a letter to Mamata Banerjee, apprising her about her decision to quit the party post. 

Fissures in TMC after poll rout

The letter has renewed discussion on whether the recent assembly election defeat has exposed deeper divisions inside the TMC. Some leaders are now questioning if there is a growing rift between the party’s traditional organisational setup and its newer, strategy-focused political approach.

In her letter, Ghosh Dastidar also expressed concern over allegations of corruption and criminalisation in politics. These issues were repeatedly raised by opposition parties during the election campaign.

Ghosh Dastidar is not only a senior parliamentarian but has also played an important organisational role in the party. She has previously headed TMC’s women’s wing.

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