Rijiju calls Congress 'Bhasmasur' amid TMC symbol freeze row

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday said the Congress was like "Bhasmasur" and that whoever stays with it is ultimately destroyed, adding that the TMC and NCP had emerged out of the Congress. The Election Commission on Thursday froze the TMC's name and "flower" symbol amid contesting claims from factions led by Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee. Rahul Gandhi alleged BJP-ECI collusion, while Banerjee called the order illegal and said she would not surrender.

Written by AI from News18 — India · not yet reviewed by an editor · Published 18 Sept 2026, 6:48 pm IST

Source

News18 — India · read the original report ↗

#bjp#congress#tmc#election commission#west bengal

Desk check · some claims need care

What the desk checked (5)

Kiren Rijiju called Congress 'Bhasmasur', saying whoever stays with it is destroyed — Directly quoted and attributed to the Union Minister, with an ANI video reference in the source
ECI froze TMC's name and 'flower' symbol on Thursday after contesting claims from factions led by Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee — Attributed to the Election Commission in the source; the symbol is described both as 'flower' and 'flowers and grass' within the same text
Rahul Gandhi alleged BJP and the Election Commission collude to split parties, citing Shiv Sena and NCP — Quoted from his post on X; an allegation, not established fact
Mamata Banerjee said 92 lakh votes were deleted and the margin was only 32 lakh even after EVMs were hijacked — Unverified allegation quoted from Banerjee; no independent source or data given
Sanchita Dey Pradhan withdrew her Nandigram candidature after meeting West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari — Stated in the source without attribution to a named official or document

Written by AI from News18 — India · not yet reviewed by an editor · How we use AI · Report an error

Analysts’ view opinion

AI Political Analyst

The freezing of the TMC's name and symbol is not merely a procedural dispute — it is a contest over narrative and opposition unity just ahead of the Bengal bypolls. Rahul Gandhi is framing it as a pattern running from Shiv Sena to NCP to TMC, putting institutional credibility at the centre; Kiren Rijiju is flipping the charge by invoking "Bhasmasur" and reminding voters that both TMC and NCP were born out of the Congress, trying to strip Congress of the victim's position. The immediate political consequence is visible: Mamata Banerjee is moving closer to the Congress, signalled by her backing of the Congress candidate in Nandigram.

A frozen name and symbol creates a voter-recognition problem, and contesting a bypoll under a fresh identity is a structural disadvantage for any party.
Mamata's "we will not surrender" language hands her a ready-made victimhood plank, a familiar way of consolidating her base during a campaign.
Rahul Gandhi's late-night call and Mamata's support for a Congress candidate suggest growing mutual dependence between two forces that usually compete in Bengal.
Rijiju's counter serves two purposes: redirecting the party-breaking charge to Congress's own history, and recasting criticism of the ECI as partisan positioning.
How much traction the Ritabrata Banerjee faction gains is untested, and whether the real beneficiary is that faction or the BJP through a split vote will only be clear at the polls.

What to watch — Watch whether Mamata's faction can hold its voters under a new name and symbol, and whether the Congress–TMC coordination hardens into a durable alliance or stays a one-off.

The story establishes allegations of collusion, not proof of it, and does not settle the legal merits of the rival factions' claims or the final outcome of the dispute.

Deep dive

Research brief · 8 facts · 5 dates · exam-ready

The brief

Context

The Election Commission of India froze the Trinamool Congress's name and its "flower" (described elsewhere in the source as "flowers and grass") symbol after two rival factions — one led by former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the other by former TMC leader Ritabrata Banerjee — filed contesting claims to be the "Asli TMC" ahead of West Bengal bypolls. Congress MP and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi alleged that the BJP and the ECI colluded to split parties, citing the earlier Shiv Sena and NCP disputes. Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju hit back on Friday, calling the Congress a "Bhasmasur" that destroys whoever stays with it and noting that both the TMC and the NCP had emerged out of the Congress. Mamata Banerjee called the freeze order illegal and said she would not surrender.

Key facts

Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju said on Friday: "The Congress party is like Bhasmasur; whoever stays with it is ultimately destroyed and finished."
The ECI on Thursday froze the TMC's name and its "flower" symbol (also referred to as "flowers and grass") amid contesting factional claims.
The rival claimants are a faction led by former West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and one led by former TMC leader Ritabrata Banerjee.
Rijiju argued the TMC and the NCP had both emerged out of the Congress, and that the BJP became "the world's largest party" under PM Narendra Modi without breaking any other party.
Rahul Gandhi posted on X: "First Shiv Sena, then NCP, and now Trinamool Congress. The pattern is the same every time-the BJP and the Election Commission collude to split a party."
Rahul Gandhi said the ECI's constitutional responsibility is to protect the mandate, but it is "aiding the very forces that overturn the people's verdict".
Mamata Banerjee called the order "illegal", alleged "political bias and vendetta", and said "92 lakh votes were deleted" and that even after "hijacking EVMs" the difference was only 32 lakh.
Sanchita Dey Pradhan, fielded by the Mamata-led faction, met West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari and withdrew her candidature from the Nandigram bypoll; Mamata then backed the Congress candidate there.

Timeline

Thursday (as per the story published September 18, 2026)ECI freezes the TMC's name and "flower" symbol following contesting claims from the Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee factions.
Same period (late night, per source)Rahul Gandhi holds a late-night call with Mamata Banerjee after the EC order, per a linked report headline: 'We Are In This Together'.
Friday, September 18, 2026Rahul Gandhi alleges BJP-ECI collusion on X, citing Shiv Sena and NCP precedents.
Friday, September 18, 2026Kiren Rijiju calls the Congress a "Bhasmasur", says the TMC and NCP emerged out of the Congress (ANI video, September 18, 2026).
Around the same timeSanchita Dey Pradhan withdraws from the Nandigram bypoll after meeting CM Suvendu Adhikari; Mamata announces support for the Congress candidate there.

Who has a stake

Election Commission of India (ECI) — Its handling of rival factional claims and the symbol freeze is under attack; Rahul Gandhi questions whether it is discharging its constitutional duty to protect the mandate.
Mamata Banerjee (former West Bengal CM) — Loss of the TMC name and symbol ahead of bypolls; calls the order illegal and vows not to surrender.
Ritabrata Banerjee (former TMC leader) — Leads the rival faction staking claim to being the "Asli TMC" and to the party's name and symbol.
Kiren Rijiju / BJP — Rebutting the charge of breaking parties by arguing the Congress itself spawned splinters like the TMC and NCP.
Rahul Gandhi / Congress — Building an opposition-unity narrative of "vote chori" and BJP-ECI collusion; Mamata is now backing the Congress candidate in Nandigram.
Voters in West Bengal bypolls, incl. Nandigram — Face ballots with renamed parties and new symbols; one candidate has already withdrawn from Nandigram.
Suvendu Adhikari (West Bengal Chief Minister, per source) — Met the Mamata faction's Nandigram candidate before she withdrew, drawing the seat into the controversy.

Why it matters

A freeze on a major regional party's name and symbol just before bypolls directly affects voter recognition and the level playing field, and revives questions about how the ECI adjudicates rival factional claims. With Shiv Sena and NCP precedents invoked, the dispute has become a national argument over institutional neutrality rather than a purely Bengal affair. It also reshapes alliances, with Mamata Banerjee backing a Congress candidate in Nandigram.

UPSC angle

Prelims pointers

The Election Commission of India froze the TMC's name and "flower"/"flowers and grass" symbol amid rival factional claims (order on Thursday; story dated September 18, 2026).
Rival TMC factions: one led by Mamata Banerjee, the other by Ritabrata Banerjee — an "Asli TMC" dispute ahead of West Bengal bypolls.
Kiren Rijiju is the Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs; he called the Congress a "Bhasmasur".
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition and Congress MP, cited Shiv Sena and NCP as earlier cases of symbol disputes.
Nandigram bypoll: candidate Sanchita Dey Pradhan withdrew after meeting West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari; Mamata backed the Congress candidate.
Mamata Banerjee's claims: 92 lakh votes deleted; margin of 32 lakh; she called the freeze order "illegal".

Mains framing

The freezing of the Trinamool Congress's name and symbol by the ECI, following contesting claims from the Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee factions, has turned a party-internal split into a test of electoral institutions. The Opposition's argument, articulated by Rahul Gandhi, is that a repeated pattern — Shiv Sena, then NCP, now TMC — shows the ruling party and the Commission acting in concert to break parties and strip them of symbols, and that the ECI is failing its constitutional responsibility to protect the popular mandate; Mamata Banerjee terms the order illegal, alleges political vendetta, and cites deleted votes and EVM concerns. The government's counter, voiced by Kiren Rijiju, is that the Congress itself is the source of splinters — the TMC and NCP both emerged from it — and that the BJP grew into the "world's largest party" without breaking any outfit. The practical stakes are immediate: parties must rebrand and voters face unfamiliar names and symbols on the eve of bypolls, with one Nandigram candidate already withdrawing. The way forward suggested by the controversy itself is greater transparency, speed and reasoned consistency in adjudicating factional claims, so that decisions on names and symbols are not perceived as electoral interventions; the source does not state any specific reform proposal.

Key terms

Symbol freeze: An ECI action barring both rival factions from using a party's name and symbol while contesting claims are decided; here applied to the TMC's "flower" symbol.
Bhasmasur: Mythological figure who was reduced to ashes by his own boon; used by Rijiju as a metaphor that the Congress destroys parties that stay with it.
Election Commission of India (ECI): The constitutional body that conducts elections and decides disputes over party names and symbols; accused by Rahul Gandhi of collusion with the BJP.
"Asli TMC" dispute: The contest over which faction is the real Trinamool Congress, entitled to the party's name and symbol, ahead of the West Bengal bypolls.
Leader of the Opposition (LoP): Post held by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who attacked the ECI over the TMC symbol freeze.
Nandigram bypoll: West Bengal bypoll where the Mamata faction's candidate Sanchita Dey Pradhan withdrew and Mamata backed the Congress candidate.

Practice questions

Examine the Election Commission of India's role in adjudicating disputes over party names and symbols. Does the freezing of a symbol during rival factional claims serve or undermine free and fair elections?
"Party splits in India are as much a product of internal organisational weakness as of external inducement." Discuss with reference to the Shiv Sena, NCP and Trinamool Congress disputes as described in recent political developments.
Allegations of institutional collusion between the ruling party and constitutional bodies have become a recurring feature of Indian political debate. What safeguards can strengthen public confidence in the ECI?

Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.

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