Kolkata: Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee on Thursday openly questioned the leadership role of party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, escalating internal tensions within the party and calling upon TMC chief Mamata Banerjee to decide between senior loyalists and her nephew.
The senior leader, who has long been regarded as one of the party’s prominent voices, announced that he would no longer represent Abhishek Banerjee in legal matters. However, he clarified that he would continue handling court cases related to the Trinamool Congress as an organisation.
The latest confrontation stems from developments in an ongoing investigation related to an alleged signature forgery case. Kalyan Banerjee said he had been appearing on behalf of Abhishek Banerjee in the Calcutta High Court when he discovered that a separate petition had been filed concerning the CID’s search operations at the TMC’s Kalighat headquarters and Abhishek’s office in Kolkata.
According to Kalyan Banerjee, he was not informed about the separate legal move and only learned about it later through intermediaries. He claimed the lack of communication created complications because both matters were interconnected and could not be heard independently by different benches.
Expressing disappointment, the veteran lawyer accused Abhishek Banerjee of disregarding his professional experience and treating senior leaders without due respect. He said it had become difficult to work under such circumstances and indicated that younger lawyers would now be handling Abhishek’s legal battles.
In a strongly worded statement, Kalyan Banerjee asserted that he could not accept Abhishek Banerjee as his leader and said he would find it difficult to remain in the party if the latter continued to hold a leadership position.
The Sreerampur MP said the final decision now rests with Mamata Banerjee, urging her to choose between long-time party workers who have dedicated decades to the organisation and her nephew, who currently occupies a key position in the party hierarchy.
His remarks come at a time when the Trinamool Congress is grappling with growing internal challenges and public disagreements among senior leaders, raising fresh questions about the party’s future leadership structure.
Despite his criticism of Abhishek Banerjee, Kalyan Banerjee reiterated his loyalty to Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress, indicating that his disagreement is centred on leadership and decision-making within the party rather than its political ideology.
