Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee made it clear that there is no way back for leaders who left her party. Speaking at the party’s 21st July Martyrs’ Day rally near Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, Banerjee said she would rather join the “Cockroach Janta Party” (CJP) protests than accept the rebels into the TMC again.
#WATCH | Kolkata: Former CM and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee says, “If need be, I myself will go to the CJP protest. They had our support from the beginning, and will continue to have it.”
— ANI (@ANI) July 21, 2026
(Source: TMC) pic.twitter.com/2iWRW4wggs
“If needed, I will join the Cockroach Janta Party,” she said while stressing that those who betrayed the party would not be welcomed back.
Banerjee also threw an open challenge to the rebel leaders, asking them to stop working in support of the BJP from behind the scenes.
“I challenge the traitors to directly join the BJP and fight elections,” she said. “If you want to support the BJP, go to the BJP. The more of you who leave, the happier I will be. My students and youth workers are there to fill every vacancy.”
She added, “Those thieves have gone to the BJP. I will never take them back.”
Appeals for INDI bloc unity against BJP
Even as she attacked the rebels, Banerjee reached out to other INDI bloc parties in West Bengal, including the Congress and the CPI(M), urging them to put political differences aside to take on the BJP.
“I want everyone to unite under the banner of the INDI alliance in Bengal to fight the BJP. I don’t have any ego. I urge others also to keep aside their differences and fight together,” she said, adding that the fight against the BJP was bigger than individual or political egos.
Parallel rallies expose split within TMC
The appeal for opposition unity came on a day when the TMC itself looked divided. While Banerjee addressed the Martyrs’ Day gathering organised by her faction near Birla Planetarium, a separate rally was held on Mayo Road by the breakaway group led by Ritabrata Banerjee, highlighting the growing split in the party after the BJP formed the government in West Bengal.
Banerjee also claimed that the rebels, with the BJP’s support, were trying to take away the TMC’s “twin flower” election symbol. She said that would not happen because she is the party’s founder-chairperson.
She further announced that she would soon begin touring districts across the state.
“After this, I will travel across the districts. I want to see who has the power to stop me,” she said.
High Court orders police protection for rally
Earlier in the day, the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction approached the Calcutta High Court, saying the stage set up for the 21st July rally had been damaged and loudspeakers disconnected despite an earlier court order directing police to maintain law and order.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya directed the Kolkata Police to provide security for the rally and asked the Joint Commissioner (Headquarters) to submit a report on 31st July. The court also ordered that the stage and all meeting materials be removed by 9 pm on Tuesday, with police assistance provided during the process.
