Why 20 Rebel TMC MPs Chose NCPI: The Strategy Behind the Parliamentary Split
Late Sunday evening, June 14, a group of 20 rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) Lok Sabha MPs announced their merger with the little-known Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI). The breakaway faction met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, sought recognition as a separate bloc in the House, and pledged support to the BJP-led NDA government.
The move catapulted the NCPI, a party with virtually no national political footprint into the spotlight. The merger is now being seen as a smart strategic move by the ruling BJP to circumvent anti-defection provisions while enabling the rebel MPs to align with the NDA. The move not only deepened the crisis within the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, or what is left of it, but also gave the BJP-led NDA a new ally.
Founded in 2020 by former Tripura minister Paban Kumar Das, the NCPI is a registered but unrecognised political party, according to reports. Initially conceived as a regional platform focused on tribal welfare, nationalism and governance reforms in the Northeast, it made its electoral debut in the 2023 Tripura Assembly elections, fielding candidates in a handful of constituencies. The party failed to win any seats and reportedly secured around 1,200 votes in total.
The move catapulted the NCPI, a party with virtually no national political footprint into the spotlight. The merger is now being seen as a smart strategic move by the ruling BJP to circumvent anti-defection provisions while enabling the rebel MPs to align with the NDA. The move not only deepened the crisis within the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, or what is left of it, but also gave the BJP-led NDA a new ally.
Founded in 2020 by former Tripura minister Paban Kumar Das, the NCPI is a registered but unrecognised political party, according to reports. Initially conceived as a regional platform focused on tribal welfare, nationalism and governance reforms in the Northeast, it made its electoral debut in the 2023 Tripura Assembly elections, fielding candidates in a handful of constituencies. The party failed to win any seats and reportedly secured around 1,200 votes in total.
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