Trinamool Congress facts for kids

Quick facts for kids All India Trinamool Congress
Abbreviation	AITC (official) TMC (alternatives)
Parliamentary Chairperson	Sudip Bandyopadhyay
Lok Sabha leader	Abhishek Banerjee
Rajya Sabha leader	Derek O' Brien
Founder	Mamata Banerjee
Founded	1 January 1998 (27 years ago) (1998-01-01)
Split from	Indian National Congress
Headquarters	30B Harish Chatterjee Street, Kolkata 700026
Newspaper	Jago Bangla (Bengali)
Student wing	Trinamool Chaatra Parishad
Youth wing	All India Trinamool Youth Congress
Women's wing	Trinamool Mahila Congress
Labour wing	Indian National Trinamool Trade Union Congress
Peasant's wing	Trinamool Kisan Khet Majdur Congress
Ideology	Bengali nationalism Regionalism Populism Welfarism Progressivism Social liberalism Secularism
Political position	Centre
Colours	Green
ECI Status	State Party
Alliance	NDA (1998–2001; 2001–2004) UPA (2009–2012) I.N.D.I.A. (2023–present)
Seats in Lok Sabha	28 / 543
Seats in Rajya Sabha	12 / 245
Seats in State Legislative Assemblies	227 / 4,036 Indian states 222 / 294 (West Bengal) 5 / 60 (Meghalaya)
Number of states and union territories in government	1 / 31
Election symbol
Party flag
Elections

The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), also known as Trinamool Congress, is a political party in India. It is very important in the state of West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee started the party on January 1, 1998. It was formed after she left the Indian National Congress party.

The AITC quickly became well-known in West Bengal because of Mamata Banerjee's leadership. Today, it is the ruling party in West Bengal. It is also the third-largest party in India based on the number of its members in Parliament.

The party won a big election in West Bengal in 2011. This victory ended 34 years of rule by the Left Front government. The AITC has won the state election three times in a row. It has been the ruling party in West Bengal since May 20, 2011. Mamata Banerjee is the chairperson, or leader, of the party.

Party History

How the Party Started

Mamata Banerjee was a member of the Indian National Congress for over 26 years. In 1998, she left that party and created the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The official symbol of the TMC is Jora Ghas Phul, which means two flowers with grass.

In the 1998 national elections, the TMC won seven seats. In the next national election in 1999, the party won eight seats. This was an increase of one seat. In 2000, the TMC also won the local elections in Kolkata.

The party first joined an alliance called the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). They were part of the government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In 2001, the TMC won 60 seats in the state elections. They became the main opposition party. However, they lost many seats in the 2004 national elections and the 2006 state elections. After that, they left the NDA.

Nandigram Movement

In December 2006, people in Nandigram were told that their land would be taken for a chemical plant. About 70,000 people would lose their homes. People started protesting against this plan, and the TMC helped lead the movement.

A group called the Bhumi Uchchhed Pratirodh Committee was formed to protest. On March 14, 2007, police fired on the protesters. Fourteen villagers were killed, and many more went missing. This event caused a lot of anger against the government. It also helped the TMC gain more support for future elections.

Elections After Nandigram

In the 2009 national election, the TMC won 19 seats in West Bengal. They worked with the Indian National Congress. Mamata Banerjee became the Minister of Railways in the government led by Manmohan Singh.

In 2010, the party won 97 out of 141 seats in the Kolkata local elections. They also won most of the other local elections.

In Government

Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal and leader of the All India Trinamool Congress.

In the 2011 West Bengal state election, the TMC and its allies won 227 seats. This was a big victory, as they defeated the Left Front government that had been in power for 34 years. The TMC alone won 184 seats, which meant they could govern without needing an alliance.

Mamata Banerjee became the Chief Minister of West Bengal. On September 18, 2012, she decided to stop supporting the national government. This was because the TMC's requests on certain economic policies were not met.

In the 2014 national elections, the TMC won 34 out of 42 seats in West Bengal. Because of their success in several states, the Election Commission of India recognized TMC as a national political party on September 2, 2016.

The party won the state election again in 2016. Mamata Banerjee continued as Chief Minister. In the 2019 national election, the TMC won the most seats in West Bengal. However, they lost some seats to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Mamata Banerjee's government was reelected in the 2021 state election. They won by a large number of votes.

Presence in Other States

The Trinamool Congress has tried to expand its presence beyond West Bengal. Here's a look at some of the states where they have been active:

Arunachal Pradesh

In the 2009 state election in Arunachal Pradesh, the Trinamool Congress won five seats.

Assam

In the 2001 state election in Assam, a Trinamool Congress candidate won one seat. In August 2021, Sushmita Dev, a former Member of Parliament, joined the Trinamool Congress. She is now a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha. In 2022, Ripun Bora, another former Member of Parliament, also joined the AITC.

Bihar

In November 2021, Kirti Azad, a former Member of Parliament, joined the TMC.

Goa

The party started working in Goa in September 2021. Former Chief Minister Luizinho Faleiro joined the party. Other notable people like former footballer Denzil Franco also joined. In the 2022 Goa state election, the party received 5.2% of the votes.

Haryana

In November 2021, Ashok Tanwar, a former political leader, joined the TMC.

Kerala

The Kerala Pradesh Trinamool Congress started in 2009. In the 2014 national elections, their candidates ran in five areas. The party is active in all 14 districts of Kerala.

Manipur

In the 2012 state elections in Manipur, the party won eight seats. They became the main opposition party in the state assembly. In the 2017 state elections, they won only one seat.

Meghalaya

In 2004, a TMC candidate won a seat in the national election from Meghalaya. In November 2021, former Chief Minister of Meghalaya, Mukul Sangma, and 11 other state assembly members joined the TMC. This made the TMC the largest opposition party in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly. In the 2023 state election, the Trinamool Congress won five seats.

Punjab

The party started working in Punjab before the 2017 state elections. They ran candidates in 20 areas but did not win any seats. Since 2019, the party has continued its work in Punjab under new leadership.

Tripura

In 2016, six state assembly members from the Indian National Congress joined the TMC in Tripura. They wanted to oppose the ruling party there. Later, these members left the TMC and joined another party. In the 2021 local elections in Tripura, the TMC won one seat.

Uttar Pradesh

The party's state unit in Uttar Pradesh was set up in 2005. In 2012, Shyam Sunder Sharma won a special election in the Mant area on an AITC ticket. In October 2021, two senior leaders from Uttar Pradesh, Rajeshpati Tripathi and Laliteshpati Tripathi, joined the AITC.

Electoral Performance

National Election Results

Year	Lok Sabha	Party leader	Seats contested	Seats won	Seats +/-	Vote % (in whole country)	Vote swing	Ref.
1998	12th Lok Sabha	Mamata Banerjee	29	7 / 543	7	2.42%	new
1999	13th Lok Sabha		29	8 / 543	1	2.57%	0.15%
2004	14th Lok Sabha		33	2 / 543	6	2.07%	0.5%
2009	15th Lok Sabha		26	19 / 543	17	3.20%	1.15%
2014	16th Lok Sabha		131	34 / 543	15	3.84%	0.64%
2019	17th Lok Sabha		62	22 / 543	12	4.11%	0.27%
2024	18th Lok Sabha		47	29 / 543	7	4.37%	0.26%

State Election Results

Legislative Assembly elections

Election Year	Party leader	Seats contested	Seats won	Change in seats	Percentage of votes	Vote swing	Popular vote	Result
Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly
2009		26	5 / 60	5	15.04%	–	86,406	Others
Assam Legislative Assembly
2001		23	1 / 126	1	0.55%	–	58,361	Others
2011		126	1 / 126		2.05%	–	283,683	Others
Goa Legislative Assembly
2022	Luizinho Faleiro	29	0 / 40		5.2%	–	49,480	Others
Manipur Legislative Assembly
2012	Maibam Kunjo	60	7 / 60	7	17%	–	237,517	Opposition
2017		60	1 / 60	6	1.4%	15.6%	23,304	Others
Meghalaya Legislative Assembly
2023	Mukul Sangma	56	5 / 60	5	13.78%	13.38%	255,742	Opposition
Tripura Legislative Assembly
2018		24	0 / 60		0.3%	–	6,989	Others
2023	Pijush Kanti Biswas	28	0 / 60		0.88%	–	22,316	Others
Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly
2012 (By-election)		1	1 / 403	1		–		Others
West Bengal Legislative Assembly
2001	Mamata Banerjee	226	60 / 294	60	30.66%	–	11,229,396	Opposition
2006	Mamata Banerjee	257	30 / 294	30	26.64%	4.02%	10,512,153	Opposition
2011	Mamata Banerjee	226	184 / 294	154	38.93%	12.29%	18,547,678	Government
2016	Mamata Banerjee	293	211 / 294	27	44.91%	5.98%	24,564,523	Government
2021	Mamata Banerjee	290	215 / 294	4	48.02%	3.11%	28,968,281	Government

Presidential Election Results

Election	Candidate	First round		Second round		Result
		Votes	%	Votes	%
2022	Yashwant Sinha	380,177	35.97	N/A		Lost

Party Symbols and Slogans

A party office of the Trinamool Congress in Howrah.

The name "Trinamool" means 'grassroots' in Bengali. The party's election symbol, Jora Ghas Phul (two flowers with grass), also represents this idea. It shows a plant growing from the ground. The name "All India" in the party's full name shows that it aims to be a national party.

Ma Mati Manush (Bengali: মা মাটি মানুষ) is a famous slogan created by Mamata Banerjee. It means "Mother, Motherland, and People." This slogan became very popular during the 2011 state election in West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee also wrote a book and recorded a song with this title.

The slogan Joy Bangla is also used by Mamata Banerjee and her party. It helps create a sense of identity for Bengali people in India. It is often used to end political speeches.

In the 2021 state election, the party used the song "Khela Hobe" (meaning "Game On" or "The Game Will Happen"). This song was written by a young member of the party. The phrase "Khela Hobe" has since been used by other political parties across India.

Leadership

The main decision-making group of the party is its Core Committee.

• Mamata Banerjee — She is the founder and chairperson of the party. She is also the leader of the party in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly and the Chief Minister of West Bengal.
• Abhishek Banerjee — He is the General Secretary of the party.
• Derek O'Brien — He is the leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha (one of India's two houses of Parliament).
• Sudip Bandyopadhyay — He is the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha (the other house of Parliament).
• Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar — She is the Deputy leader of the party in the Lok Sabha.
• Kalyan Banerjee — He is the Chief Whip of the party in the Lok Sabha.
• Sukhendu Shekhar Roy — He is the Chief Whip of TMC in Rajya Shabha.
• Mukul Sangma — He was the Leader of the Opposition in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly.
• Aroop Biswas — He is the Treasurer of the party.
• Sobhandeb Chatteejee - He is the Deputy Leader of the House of West Bengal Legislative Assembly.

The party's executive committee is called the National Working Committee.

Images for kids

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  Mamata Banerjee

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  Dinesh Trivedi

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  Mukul Roy

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  Sudip Bandyopadhyay

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  Saugata Roy

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  Sisir Adhikari

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  Sultan Ahmed

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  Chowdhury Mohan Jatua