The Trinamool Congress appeared split over the scrapping of Article 370 and the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir after one of its MPs, Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, publicly welcomed the Centre’s decision while several party colleagues opposed it.

Opposing views within the party

TMC MPs including Derek O’Brien, Saugata Roy and Sudip Bandyopadhyay spoke out against the move and called for a debate on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019. Ray, however, struck a very different note on Twitter, describing the decision as a correction of a long-running “Comedy of Errors” and likening the day’s announcement to a thunderbolt.

O’Brien, by contrast, objected to supporters of the move describing it as “The Final Solution”, noting that this had been the code name for the Nazi plan in 1942 to murder the Jews. He said the Trinamool opposed what he called the constitutional immorality and procedural harakiri of the day.

A pattern of dissent

TMC leaders usually follow the party line on major issues, but with the BJP growing in West Bengal, members have increasingly voiced contrary views on social media.

Party leaders recently differed with chief Mamata Banerjee over a strike by junior doctors in the state. Actor and TMC MP Dev asked on Twitter why doctors, who save lives, were being attacked repeatedly, and said it was the responsibility of those in power to protect them. Shabba Hakim, daughter of Firhad Hakim, who is Kolkata’s mayor and the state’s urban development minister, and Banerjee’s nephew Abesh also expressed solidarity with the doctors. Former mayors Sovan Chatterjee and Sabyasachi Dutta have likewise opposed the party on several issues in the past.

What happened next

Parliament ended Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 on 5-6 August 2019, and the state was reorganised into two union territories.

See also: Lok Sabha members

Originally published on 6 August 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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