A petition filed against the Election Commission's decision to freeze the name and election symbol of Mamata Banerjee's party Trinamool Congress (TMC) was heard in the Supreme Court on Thursday.

TMC Name Symbol Row: The ongoing controversy in West Bengal politics regarding the name and election symbol of Trinamool Congress (TMC) has now reached the Supreme Court. During the hearing of this case on 24 September 2026, the Supreme Court asked the Election Commission as to how much time can the dispute be resolved keeping in mind the interests of both the parties. The court has asked the Election Commission's counsel to take instructions from the Commission and give the deadline in the next hearing. The matter will now be heard on September 28.

This controversy has come to light at a time when by-elections are going to be held on two assembly seats of West Bengal. In view of the ongoing organizational dispute between the two groups, the Election Commission has currently banned the use of the original party name and reserved election symbol.

What is the controversy over TMC's name and symbol?

In September, as part of an interim arrangement, the Election Commission had frozen the name 'All India Trinamool Congress' and the party's traditional 'flower and grass' election symbol for the two rival factions. According to the commission, no faction will be allowed to use the original name and reserved symbol until a final decision is taken on the party's organizational dispute.

After this, in view of the upcoming by-elections, different names and election symbols have been allotted to both the groups. The Mamata Banerjee-led faction has been given the name 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and 'football player' election symbol. The other group has been allotted the name 'Democratic Trinamool Congress' and 'Envelope' election symbol. This arrangement is currently applicable on an interim basis for the by-elections.

Why did Mamata Banerjee approach the Supreme Court?

Mamta Banerjee has challenged this interim order of the Election Commission in the Supreme Court. On his behalf, senior advocate Kapil Sibal argued in the court that freezing of the party's name and election symbol during the election process has created a problem for his side regarding effective legal remedies. The Supreme Court had listed the matter for urgent hearing.

In the hearing on September 24, instead of giving a final decision on the commission's order, the court sought information on the possible timeline for settlement of the dispute. This indicates that the immediate question before the court is how soon the Election Commission can take a final decision on this organizational dispute.

Why was the by-elections affected?

By-elections are to be held on Nandigram and Rejinagar assembly seats of West Bengal on 6 October. Keeping this election process in mind, the Election Commission has allotted different names and symbols to both the groups. In such a situation, in the elections of these two seats, the new electoral identity of both the groups will be visible in front of the voters instead of the traditional name and symbol of TMC.

Mamata Banerjee's faction has also announced support to the Congress candidate in Nandigram. Amidst this development, the political importance of the ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court regarding the party's name and election symbol has increased further.