Trinamool chairperson Mamata Banerjee on Monday, during a virtual meeting with her party MPs, appointed her heir-apparent Abhishek Banerjee as Trinamool’s new leader in the Lok Sabha, replacing the ailing MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay.

However, the meeting ended in embarrassment for Bengal’s ruling dispensation, as the party’s chief whip and Serampore MP, Kalyan Banerjee, announced his resignation from the post after Mamata indirectly blamed him for lack of coordination in Parliament.

Banerjee, a four-term TMC MP from Hooghly’s Serampore, blamed the absence of many of his party colleagues in Parliament.

This brings fresh discomfort to Trinamool at a time when Mamata has planned to corner the BJP in Parliament over recent atrocities against Bengali migrant workers in BJP-ruled states and the proposed Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

“I convened a virtual meeting today with all @AITCofficial MPs from both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Given that our Lok Sabha leader, Shri Sudip Bandyopadhyay, is unwell and undergoing medical treatment, the MPs have unanimously decided to entrust Shri Abhishek Banerjee with the responsibility of leading the party in the Lok Sabha as the leader of the party until Sudip da returns to good health,” Mamata wrote on X on Monday evening.

A senior Trinamool MP said Abhishek’s new responsibility sends the message that he would now lead both in Delhi and at the organisational level in Bengal.

Abhishek has already begun organisational meetings with district units, starting Monday with Alipurduar and Cooch Behar. These will continue until the third week of September. He is scheduled to hold a mega organisational meeting with 9,000 party workers on Tuesday.

Kalyan Banerjee, however, fired one outburst after another, targeting Mamata and many of his colleagues.

“Mamata Di alleged a lack of coordination in the Lok Sabha. As the chief whip, I was leading the House in Sudip Bandyopadhyay’s absence.... That’s why I resigned from the post of chief whip. I also sent my resignation letter through WhatsApp to persons concerned, including deputy leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar,” the 69-year-old MP told
The Telegraph.

“Didi did not mention my name, but the allegation was aimed at me. She doesn’t see how I’m expected to run the House with just 10–11 MPs out of 29 attending the sessions,” he said.

He named several MPs for poor attendance, including Mala Roy, Partha Bhowmik and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar.

Asked if he raised these concerns during the virtual meeting, he said there was no “option” to share opinions.

Banerjee, known to be the bête noire of the party’s Krishnanagar MP Mahua Moitra, also accused her of verbally abusing him in Parliament and claimed that the party took no action despite his complaint.

He said he had been handling the party’s parliamentary duties while also working as an advocate for the state government in the Supreme Court in several key cases such as the SSC recruitment scam or OBC issue.

Talking to reporters in Delhi, the MP said Mamata at the meeting had remarked that the party’s stand in Parliament was not discussed with her. “This accusation is not true.... perhaps, my need in the party is now over.... If need be I will quit politics,” Banerjee, deemed close to Mamata, said.

As soon as Banerjee’s outrage became public, Abhishek called him up and urged him to put off on his resignation, saying they would discuss the issue in Delhi on August 7.

“Mamata Di accused me of getting into squabbles with someone. But I can’t stay silent if a woman MP uses unacceptable language toward me. I’ll tell Abhishek everything during the meeting,” said Banerjee, indirectly referring to Moitra.

Asked if he would reconsider quitting as chief whip after meeting Abhishek, he said: “That will be decided after the meeting.”

A party MP said that while Banerjee had expressed his grievances against Mamata, his actual target was Moitra.

“Let Abhishek sit down with Kalyan da — everything will be settled,” said the MP.

Abhishek took to X to thank Mamata and his party MPs.

“I am deeply honoured by the trust reposed in me by our party chairperson Didi @MamataOfficial and my fellow MPs of the All India Trinamool Congress, in choosing me to lead our parliamentary party in the Lok Sabha,” he said.

“...I take on this responsibility and pledge to work closely with all my colleagues to ensure that Trinamool’s voice remains strong and unwavering in Parliament. Together, we will continue to resist the authoritarianism of the Union Government and defend the core values of our Constitution - JUSTICE, LIBERTY, EQUALITY AND FRATERNITY.

“Our mission remains clear: To protect the rights, respect and aspirations of the people of Bengal,” he said.