Trinamul vote share will shatter all records: Abhishek
The Statesman | 17 April 2026
Trinamul Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee is not happy with the functioning of the Supreme Court appointed tribunals, as he thinks they are still not functional properly. He also feels that the Election Commission of India is working as an extended arm of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with the other agencies, said sources.
Abhishek is supposed to have told the gathering that he is putting on record that the Trinamul vote share will shatter all records and cross the 2021 tally.
The tribunals consist of retired Chief Justices and former judges to handle cases regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
Abhishek on Tuesday was speaking at an internal meeting of the Trinamul Congress (TMC), which was attended by more than 30,000+ people, including all the candidates, MPs, frontal heads, spokespersons, BLA 1 and other relevant stakeholders, zilla parishad members, councillors and party’s election committee members.
The meeting is important as it is happening just a week ahead of the first phase of polling day, 23 April.
The TMC national general secretary highlighted six months of hard work and the fight to be on top.
Abhishek said that the BJP has spent crores of rupees to create a wave that the party is coming to power. This they have done after making people believe that all the deleted 27 lakh voters are TMC supporters. “I challenge today that our vote share is increasing. This is a very crucial phase and keep your ego aside. This is the time to keep differences aside and fight unitedly for the next 15 days. Even if they delete 60 lakh names, they won’t be able to defeat us,” Abhishek is supposed to have said his party leaders.
Talking about his party’s chances of a win Abhishek pointed out that all the surveys that came out in the media in Delhi, Rajasthan and Kolkata show that despite deleting 1 crore names, the TMC is coming back to power.
Cautioning the party leaders, he said that he has been keeping an eye on who all are performing and working in their constituencies. He said: “Party will reward those who perform well. Others, who think that they will just work to show off, the party is keeping an eye on them. Your posts depend on your work. If you think that you will get a ticket by lobbying around any Kolkata leader, you are wrong.”
Sources said that Abhishek also cautioned Kalna Municipality chairman and to mend his ways.
The TMC second in command also slammed Union home minister Amit Shah for threatening that on 23rd he will put all TMC workers in their houses. He said that “Gujarat’s Goonda” is threatening Bengalis. “We didn’t bow down to the British, who are these bohiragotos (outsiders)?
Abhishek also mentioned about the arrest of I-PAC director Vinesh Chandel’s arrest. “BJP is using agencies to threaten us but these things will make us stronger. One election observer (posted in Kolkata) has given a WhatsApp instruction that my car and my wife’s car will be checked,” Abhishek is supposed to have said.
The TMC MP also asked his partymen to be vigilant these days and raise their voice any time they see any suspected activity by the ECI. He mentioned that in Uttar Dinajpur, during postal ballot voting one BLO forced a voter to vote in favour of BJP and that the party resisted.
He asked people to be vigilant outside the strong rooms. He said that if CRPF men enter and threaten anyone inside booths, TMC workers should inform the leaders. TMC control rooms will be active from 5 a.m. on polling days. “In Bihar they changed 5-6 EVMs per Assembly constituency and because the other parties were not alert, the BJP managed to defeat them. If you find any voter, who doesn’t belong from here, do not allow them to vote, come what may,” he said.
Abhishek also said that names of around 58 lakh Bengali Hindus have been deleted and compared the situation akin to NRC in Assam.
Criticising the Congress, he asked his partymen from Malda and Murshidabad to explain it to people that a vote to Congress here is a vote for the BJP. He is supposed to have said that if a Congress leader wins, he will take money and join the BJP.