On March 29, members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) party are organising a protest at the Parliament premises, which coincides with the demonstration led by party leader Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata. Mamata Banerjee is planning to hold a two-day dharna in front of the BR Ambedkar statue at Esplanade in Kolkata, protesting against the Centre’s failure to disburse funds to West Bengal.

TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, who is also the nephew of the West Bengal CM, will be speaking at a rally denouncing the Centre’s policies that are perceived as ‘anti-people’ and its unfavourable treatment towards the West Bengal government. The protest, led by TMC MPs, will be held near the Ambedkar statue on the Parliament premises. Party leaders have emphasised that the demonstration is intended to safeguard democracy, federalism, the Constitution and Parliament. 

On March 27, the TMC became part of an opposition strategy meeting led by the Congress and also took part in a protest referred to as ‘black’ in response to Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as an MP. 

Prasun Banerjee and Jawhar Sircar from TMC participated in the meeting held at the office of Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge. This movie is notable because Mamata Banerjee’s party had earlier stated its intention to maintain equal distance from both the Congress and the BJP.

The TMC made it clear that they only supported the Rahul Gandhi protest and emphasised the need for the opposition to come together on this matter. Jawhar Sircar shared his views on the party’s surprising move to join the Congress-led demonstration, noting that the TMC had been present at every protest and walkout from the outset and had never skipped any. He also explained that their decision to take part was symbolic and aimed to demonstrate solidarity against the collective and anti-democratic assault on all.

On the other hand, Mallikarjun Kharge expressed his approval of anyone who took a stand to safeguard democracy, in response to the TMC’s involvement in the protest. The Congress MPs donned black shirts as a symbol of the dissent against Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification. 

The demonstrations occurring in Kolkata and Parliament have the objective of bringing notice to the purported mismanagement of funds by the Centre and its treatment of the West Bengal government. The noteworthy aspect of TMC’s involvement in the protest, led by Congress, is that it signifies significant changes in the party’s stance.  This change indicates a readiness to establish partnerships with other opposition parties to contest the Centre’s policies.