In a major political blow to the Trinamool Congress following its recent West Bengal Assembly election defeat, senior leader and Mamata Banerjee’s close confidant, Firhad Hakim, resigned as Kolkata Mayor on Wednesday after initially being denied permission to step down. Hakim, who has held the mayoral post since 2018, cited increasing difficulties in managing his responsibilities with the BJP now in power, but his exit coincides with a massive internal rebellion that is threatening to fracture the party. The crisis has deepened significantly with a series of recent municipal resignations and a dramatic move by a dissident faction—led by expelled leader Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha—wherein 58 of the party's 80 MLAs submitted letters of support to challenge the current leadership and claim they represent the "real" Trinamool Congress. Political analysts view Hakim’s high-profile departure as a clear sign of the mounting pressure on Mamata Banerjee as her leadership struggles to contain a mounting mutiny and chart a path forward, even as the party delays naming his successor.
