The Election Commission of India has given a new name and election symbol to their group led by Trinamool Congress founder Mamata Banerjee ahead of West Bengal bypolls. The Mamata-led group will contest under the name of Mamata All India Trinamool Congress and use the Football Player symbol for the polls.
The decision comes one day after the Election Commission has suspended the name All India Trinamool Congress and reserved ‘Flowers & Grass’ symbol as a result of a dispute between rival groups claiming the party’s identity. The interim arrangement is intended to allow the candidates from both factions to contest the election while the larger issue of the original party identity is before the poll panel.
What new name and symbol has Mamata's group received?
Mamata Banerjee's faction has now been given the name Mamata All India Trinamool Congress and Football Player election symbol to be used in the election. The group had earlier submitted different names and symbols after the Election Commission ordered both sides to stop using the original party identity and submit new ones for the upcoming polls.
The Mamata-dominated faction had chosen football-related imagery and a cricket bat among its symbols. The Election Commission awarded the Football Player symbol.
The rival camp has been given a separate identity. Arup Roy’s group is called Democratic Trinamool Congress, and it is emblazoned with the Envelope election symbol.
Why was The ‘Flowers & Grass’ Symbol Frozen?
The Election Commission's interim order followed a dispute between rival factions over control of the All India Trinamool Congress. Both groups were claiming to represent the recognised political party and such an issue must be looked at under Paragraph 15 of Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, the poll panel said.
Until the Commission decides on that, neither party can use its original name or its reserved symbol. The Election Commission had already ordered both groups to submit alternative names and symbols to allow them to participate in the upcoming bypolls.
The original Flowers & Grass symbol has been associated with the All India Trinamool Congress for decades. The Election Commission's current list of reserved symbols identifies Flowers & Grass as the symbol of the All India Trinamool Congress.
What Does It Inevitably Mean For The Upcoming Bypolls?
The change comes just before the scheduled West Bengal bypolls in the middle of the month, so the candidates and voters should now have to deal with new party names and symbols on the ballot. The Mamata-backed group will no longer be referred to as the All India Trinamool Congress for these contests, the traditional All India Trinamool Congress identity.
Nandigram and Rejinagar are among the West Bengal Assembly constituencies scheduled for bypolls on October 6 and counting on October 9. In this way, the new identities will be part of campaigning and voter communication immediately.
For voters who have long associated Mamata Banerjee's political organisation with the Flowers & Grass symbol, the Football Player symbol is a major change in how her faction will appear on the ballot in the immediate election period.
Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress allotted the name 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and the symbol 'Football Player', to be treated as a recognized political party in the States of West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura
— ANI (@ANI) September 18, 2026
The group led by Arup Roy is allotted the name… pic.twitter.com/1VECH6MoUK
What happens to the original TMC identity?
The Election Commission’s decision does not permanently assign the original All India Trinamool Congress name or the Flowers & Grass symbol to either faction. It is only an interim arrangement while the underlying dispute is considered.
The poll panel's Paragraph 15 process allows it to examine competing claims over the identity of a recognised political party and determine which group, if any, should receive recognition for the purpose of using the party name and reserved symbol.
The present arrangement therefore separates the immediate election requirement from the longer-running organisational dispute. Mamata Banerjee's faction will campaign under the Mamata All India Trinamool Congress name with the Football Player symbol and Democratic Trinamool Congress and Envelope symbol.
The Election Commission’s final decision on the original party identity and the Flowers & Grass symbol will be a separate matter. The two factions will continue to work under their new names and symbols for the elections covered by the interim arrangement.
