Kolkata, June 8 -- The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Monday moved the Calcutta High Court against the West Bengal Assembly Speaker's decision to recognise Ritabrata Banerjee, leader of a breakaway faction within the party, as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the newly elected Assembly.

The matter was mentioned before Justice Krishna Rao with a plea for urgent consideration, with the ruling party pointing out that the first session of the 18th West Bengal Assembly is scheduled to begin on June 18. Taking note of the submissions, the court directed that the petition be listed for hearing on June 11 and placed at the top of the day's board. The petitioner was also asked to serve notices on the concerned parties in the meantime.

According to submissions made before the court, the Speaker has been named as the principal respondent in the case. The dispute arose after a majority of the TMC's legislators reportedly rallied behind Banerjee despite the party leadership having officially nominated senior leader Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay for the post.

The development marks a significant escalation of the internal crisis within the TMC legislature party. While the party won 80 seats in the recent Assembly elections, 58 of its MLAs are understood to have backed Banerjee's claim for the opposition leader's post, leading to his recognition by the Speaker. The BJP secured 207 seats in the election.

Millennium Post had reported on June 4 that the TMC was exploring legal options over the Speaker's decision.

The party is expected to rely on the Supreme Court's ruling in the Maharashtra political crisis involving rival Shiv Sena factions, where the apex court drew a distinction between a political party and its legislature party.

In that judgment, the apex court held that the authority to appoint the whip and leader in the House rests with the political party and not the legislature party. The court had also observed that recognition granted solely on the basis of support within a legislature faction, contrary to the party's authorised decision, would be inconsistent with the law.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.