Kolkata: In a dramatic political development amid the ongoing turmoil in West Bengal politics, former Trinamool Congress leader and Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) chief Humayun Kabir has offered his Rejinagar Assembly seat to Mamata Banerjee, saying he is willing to resign and facilitate her return to the state legislature through a by election.
The offer assumes significance as Mamata Banerjee currently remains outside the West Bengal Assembly following her electoral defeat in the 2026 Assembly elections. Under constitutional provisions, she would need to win a by election to return to the legislature.
Speaking to reporters, Humayun Kabir said that if Mamata Banerjee approaches him, he would willingly vacate the Rejinagar seat and support her candidature. He claimed that Rejinagar would provide a safer route back to the Assembly for the former Chief Minister and expressed confidence that she could secure victory from the constituency.
Kabir’s statement has attracted widespread attention because it comes from a leader who had recently broken away from the Trinamool Congress and emerged as one of its strongest critics. After a prolonged confrontation with the party leadership, he was expelled from the TMC and subsequently launched the Aam Janata Unnayan Party. During the Assembly election campaign, he repeatedly targeted the Mamata Banerjee government and positioned himself as an alternative political force in Murshidabad district.
The AJUP chief had contested and won from both Rejinagar and Naoda constituencies in the recently concluded Assembly elections. Since an elected representative cannot retain two Assembly seats simultaneously, Kabir is required to vacate one of them, which would trigger a by election in the constituency concerned.
Explaining his unexpected gesture, Kabir reportedly said that the current political situation in the state pains him and that despite political differences, he acknowledges the role Mamata Banerjee played in shaping his political career. His remarks have sparked speculation about changing political equations in West Bengal and the possibility of a softening of relations between the former allies.
Political observers view the development as another indication of the fluid political environment in West Bengal following the Assembly elections, which have witnessed internal unrest within the Trinamool Congress and shifting alliances among opposition leaders. Whether Mamata Banerjee accepts the offer remains unclear, but Kabir’s proposal has already added a fresh dimension to the state’s rapidly evolving political landscape.