Will resign within hour if rebel Trinamool leaders join back Didi: Abhishek Banerjee
Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee has challenged rebel party members to return to the fold, promising to resign if they do. He accused defectors of colluding with the BJP and blamed them for the party's recent electoral struggles.
Why it matters
This highlights ongoing internal instability and political friction within West Bengal's ruling party following a significant election defeat.
Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday (July 18, 2026) challenged rebel Trinamool leaders, who have blamed him for the party’s downfall, to return to the party and join “Didi”, saying he would resign within an hour if they did.
“Those who left the party and are now abusing or blaming me today…I challenge them to return to Didi (as former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is referred to). If they do, I will resign from the party within an hour. But they won’t. They have made a deal with the BJP: leave the party, join the rebel camp or the BJP, take protection from the ED, the CBI and other agencies and then blame and abuse Abhishek Banerjee,” Mr. Banerjee said while addressing the press outside former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat.
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