TMC Crisis: 'Khela' In Bengal Likely Before Durga Puja As 17 Trinamool Rebels Set To Join BJP

Months after 20 TMC rebels announced that they had merged with the NCPI and pledged their support to the NDA government, a fresh development emerged on Monday, with rebel TMC leader and Cooch Behar MP Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia claiming that 17 of the 20 NCPI MPs are set to join the BJP either before or after Durga Puja in October.

The development has intensified the internal crisis within the Trinamool Congress (TMC) following its humiliating defeat in the West Bengal Assembly election and represents a major setback for TMC chief and former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

Basunia told PTI that the 17 MPs had finalised plans to join the BJP together, claiming that their collective defection would keep them outside the purview of the anti-defection law.

"We are 17 MPs going to the BJP together. Since more than two-thirds of the 20 members will be moving, the anti-defection law will not apply to us," Basunia said.

The latest development comes after 20 dissident TMC MPs announced their merger with the little-known Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) on June 14 and extended their support to the ruling NDA.

#WATCH | Delhi: TMC rebel MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay says, "We have joined the Nationalist Citizens' Party. This is a political party. It is a recognised regional party. We have merged with it... It will be decided in the court which one the real TMC is." pic.twitter.com/BEbG5atOUx

— ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2026

Of the 20 rebel MPs, at least 14 are required to meet the two-thirds threshold to avoid disqualification.

Rebel TMC MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at his residence, in Delhi today

After meeting him, Rebel TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said, "We, the twenty MPs elected from the AITC, met the Speaker and submitted a letter requesting to sit separately; these twenty MPs constitute… pic.twitter.com/HTFttYCXdm

— ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2026

Why Only 17 And Not 20 Rebels?

MP Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia said that only three of the 20 NCPI MPs, who are from the minority community, would not formally join the BJP due to the political and administrative dynamics in their constituencies.

He claimed that MPs Abu Taher Khan, Khalilur Rahaman and Yusuf Pathan would instead extend their support to the NDA from outside.

ALSO READ: TMC Disqualification Row: LS Speaker Issues Notices To 20 Rebel MPs, Seeks Response Within Seven Days

"They will support the NDA and may be given important responsibilities or portfolios," Basunia said.

Basunia's statement came days after he and his wife, TMC MLA Sangeeta Roy, faced protests when they returned to their ancestral home in Sitai, Cooch Behar.

The couple faced demonstrations by locals and BJP workers amid criticism over Basunia's political shift.

A TMC office near his residence was also allegedly set on fire during the unrest. Basunia has maintained that he is no longer with the TMC and is now aligned with the NDA.

ALSO READ: 'Attended As NCPI Leader': Rebel MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay Defends Presence At All-Party Meet Amid Opposition Walkout

Full List Of The Rebels

Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Shatabdi Roy, Bapi Halder, Dr Sharmila Sarkar, Prasun Banerjee, Jagadish Barma Basunia, Asit Kumar Mal, Arup Chakraborty, Rachna Banerjee, Sayoni Ghosh, Khalilur Rahman, Abu Taher Khan, Yusuf Pathan, Mitali Bag, Mala Roy, Kalipada Soren, Deepak Adhikari (Dev), June Malia, and Partha Bhowmick are part of the rebel camp.