Something quite significant has happened in Indian politics right now,and honestly,the scale of it is hard to ignore. Rukmini alias Koel Mallick,popular face of Bengali film industry and Trinamool Congress MP,has officially resigned from Rajya Sabha on July 16,2026 . And she is not alone in this — she is actually fourth TMC MP to walk out in just matter of days .
Before her resignation,three other TMC Rajya Sabha members had already submitted their papers — Prakash Chik Baraik,Sushmita Dev,and Sukhendu Sekhar Roy . All three subsequently joined BJP . So this is not one isolated incident,this is starting to look like pattern.
The resignations started picking up pace after these MPs filed nominations on July 13 for upcoming Rajya Sabha byelections scheduled for July 24 . Things moved very quickly after that .
Three quick facts that paint full picture here:
- Resignation without explanation — Mallick did not provide any reasons in her resignation letter to Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan.
- Party strength diminished — TMC's Rajya Sabha presence will now drop from 13 to 9 members,a serious reduction.
- Internal disputes escalating — faction led by expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee has reportedly gathered support from over 65 of party's 80 MLAs.
What makes Mallick's situation interesting is that she was not even deeply involved in political matters during her tenure,which was expected to run until 2032 . She was nominated alongside prominent names like former West Bengal Director General Rajeev Kumar and singer-turned-politician Babul Supriyo . So her resignation feels more like quiet exit than dramatic political revolt .
But what happened after resignation is where speculation starts building. Mallick met Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav at his residence in New Delhi shortly after stepping down . Nobody is saying anything officially,but honestly,that meeting is raising obvious questions about where her political alignment is heading next .
And this is just Rajya Sabha picture. TMC is simultaneously dealing with defections of at least 20 MPs from Lok Sabha side as well . The losses are coming from multiple directions at same time.
Mamata Banerjee has publicly responded by defending her nephew and party General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee,and her statement was direct — "I will not die until I defeat BJP." Strong words,and they suggest she is not treating this as moment to step back quietly.
But words and ground reality are two different things right now . When over 65 of your own 80 MLAs are reportedly backing rebel faction,that is not small dissatisfaction — that is something much deeper eating into party structure from inside.
What exactly pushed Koel Mallick to this decision,and what her next political move actually is… that is something nobody has clear answer to yet. And honestly,whether Mamata's determination is enough to hold together what remains of TMC's strength in coming months — that question is very much still open
