Election Commission freezes TMC name and symbol, blocking Mamata's hand-drawn mark
The Election Commission has frozen the Trinamool Congress name and its "flower and grass" symbol, which Mamata Banerjee drew by hand, amid a split in the party.
For three decades, the name and election symbol of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) have been a fixture of West Bengal politics. But organisational disputes within the party grew so serious that the Election Commission has had to temporarily freeze the name "All India Trinamool Congress" and its "flower and grass" symbol. Following the Commission's decision, no rival faction can use the symbol without its approval. In effect, since the split in the TMC, neither faction will be able to use it. The symbol, which has been the TMC's identity for thirty years, has an interesting history of its own.
According to the TMC's official website, Mamata Banerjee herself drew the symbol by hand at the time the party was founded. Two green flower buds with grass below them went on to become the Trinamool Congress election symbol.
The Trinamool Congress was founded on January 1, 1998. Mamata Banerjee broke away from the Congress party to launch her own outfit, with the aim of creating a separate, new political platform for Bengal. After the party was formed, it needed a distinct identity, and that is where the story of what is now known as the "flower and grass" symbol begins.
According to the website, Mamata Banerjee drew the mark herself on the day the party was founded, showing two green buds sprouting from grass. The symbol is seen as representing unity and harmony. The TMC's website also cites a line by Kazi Nazrul Islam, "Mora ek britey dui kusum Hindu Musalman," meaning two flowers on one stem, representing Hindu-Muslim unity. According to the party's official explanation, the symbol is not merely an election mark but conveys a message of unity and secularism.
The word "Trinamool" means "roots" or "grassroots, connected to the common man," and it is for this reason that grass was given special prominence in the symbol. Several old records also refer to the TMC's election symbol as two flowers and grass. In Election Commission records, the symbol is officially registered as "flower and grass," and a Commission document lists this same symbol under the name All India Trinamool Congress.
The symbol has been the TMC's electoral identity since 1998, but by 2026 internal disputes within the party had brought it to the centre of controversy. In the current dispute, two rival factions are laying claim to the party's organisation, name and election symbol. The Election Commission heard both sides in September 2026 and issued an interim order on September 17. The Commission said it had before it two rival factions, both claiming to be the Trinamool Congress.
The matter falls under paragraph 15 of the Election Commission's Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968. In such disputes, the Commission has to decide which faction represents the recognised party. But with bypolls under way, the Commission did not have enough time to take a final decision, so as an interim arrangement, both factions have been barred from using their old name and election symbol.
Both sides have been asked to suggest three alternative names and three blank election symbols each, in order of preference, after which the two factions will be given separate names and separate symbols. This order effectively means that, for now, neither side can claim the mark drawn by Mamata Banerjee, whether it is Mamata Banerjee's own faction or the rival faction led by Abhishek Banerjee. In clear terms, the Election Commission has not yet decided who the real TMC is; this is only a temporary arrangement for the bypolls. A final decision will be taken after further hearings and examination of documents under paragraph 15.
When the Trinamool Congress was formed in 1998, Mamata Banerjee chose an election symbol for the party that matched its name and its common-man political image. About 28 years later, that same symbol is now at the centre of the party's biggest organisational dispute. For now, the Commission has only decided that until a final decision is made, neither side will be able to use the name "All India Trinamool Congress" or the "flower and grass" symbol.
Disputes over party symbols are not new for the Election Commission. Indian politics has seen several major disputes over names and symbols following party splits. In the 2017 AIADMK dispute too, both factions were temporarily barred from using the party's original name and the "two leaves" symbol.
