Comparing herself to the film character Indiana Jones, Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee has responded to her critics. She said she is still ready for a fight and wants to live until she sees “the end of BJP rule.”
After the TMC’s rout in the West Bengal assembly election, as many political analysts question Mamata’s political future, she has countered that she is capable of rebuilding a party weakened by defections.
In a Facebook message, the 71-year-old Mamata said: “You don’t need to worry about my age. A person’s age is determined by their mind, body and mental strength. Have I ever questioned the prime minister’s age? Don’t dare insult anyone over their age. On the day the assembly results were announced, BJP people wanted me to die of a heart attack. But I will live on, until I see your downfall.”
Saying she does not see age as an obstacle to a comeback, she said she would rebuild the party anew, as in the past.
Mamata said: “Let those who want to leave, leave. Whoever remains is my gold mine. Just as I started afresh alone in 2004 and 1997, I can do the same in 2026. I still have that courage. I have built not one or two but three generations of leaders, and for those who are with me, I will remain a shelter like an umbrella.”
She then declared, “I will do it, I will fight, I will survive,” making clear that she has no plan to step away from politics.
Mamata Banerjee has recently faced an unprecedented revolt within the TMC. According to the allegations, most of her party’s representatives elected to the state assembly and national parliament have rebelled. A large section of legislators have sided with rebel leader Ritabrata Banerjee, and 20 Lok Sabha MPs have joined a small political party and declared support for the NDA alliance.
Mamata’s emotional message has come a few days before the TMC’s Martyrs’ Day rally on 21 July, a highly important date on the party’s political calendar. This time, on the same day, two rival factions of the party will hold Martyrs’ Day observances separately, just one kilometre apart.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Kolkata High Court allowed the Mamata-led TMC faction to hold its annual 21 July rally near the Birla Planetarium instead of the traditional venue in front of Victoria House in Kolkata.
Notably, in 1993, 13 Congress workers were killed in a protest led by Mamata Banerjee when she was president of the Youth Congress. It is in memory of that event that the TMC has since observed ‘Martyrs’ Day’ every 21 July.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report