The Trinamool Congress (TMC) suffered another major setback on Thursday after Rajya Sabha MP Prakash Chik Baraik resigned from the Upper House, becoming the third party parliamentarian to step down within a week amid an escalating political crisis.
According to sources, Baraik met Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan and submitted his resignation, further intensifying the turmoil within the Mamata Banerjee-led party.
In his resignation letter, Baraik stated, “I do hereby resign from the membership of Rajya Sabha, which may please be accepted with immediate effect.”
He also expressed gratitude to the Rajya Sabha Chairman, Deputy Chairman and officials of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat for their support and cooperation during his tenure in Parliament.
A prominent tribal leader from West Bengal, Baraik served as a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, as well as the Consultative Committee on Tribal Affairs.
His resignation follows a series of high-profile exits from the TMC. Earlier this week, Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray resigned from both Parliament and the party, citing differences with the leadership. On Wednesday, Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev also stepped down from the Upper House and subsequently resigned from the party.
Dev’s meeting with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in New Delhi after her resignation fuelled speculation about a possible shift in her political allegiance.
With Baraik’s departure, the TMC has now lost three Rajya Sabha members in a matter of days, dealing a fresh blow to the party at a time when it is battling its most serious internal crisis in recent years.
The turmoil began after the party’s defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections and has since snowballed into a large-scale rebellion affecting both the organisation and its legislative wings.
Last week, more than two-thirds of the TMC’s MLAs — 58 out of 80 legislators — broke away from the official legislature party and secured recognition as the principal opposition bloc in the West Bengal Assembly under the leadership of expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee. The rebel camp has since claimed that its numbers have grown further.
The unrest has also spread to Parliament. Dissident MPs led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar have claimed the support of more than 20 Lok Sabha members. On Wednesday, Jadavpur MP Saayoni Ghosh and Kolkata Dakshin MP Mala Roy reportedly joined the rebel faction, adding to the pressure on the party leadership.
As resignations continue and rebel factions gain momentum, the Trinamool Congress faces mounting challenges to its unity, organisational structure and political influence, raising fresh questions about the party’s future trajectory both in West Bengal and at the national level.
