Opposition MPs on Wednesday (July 22, 2026) met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking withdrawal of Trinamool Congress (TMC) member Kalyan Banerjee's suspension, contending that the alleged altercation for which action was taken occurred after the House was adjourned and thus rules are not applicable.

*Also read \| Lok Sabha suspends TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee for using ‘unsavoury’ language against women MPs*

The delegation, comprising Congress MP K.C. Venugopal, Samajwadi Party's Dharmendra Yadav, TMC MPs Mahua Moitra, Kirti Azad, Sajda Ahmed and Pratima Mondal, among others, met the Speaker shortly after Mr. Banerjee was suspended for the remainder of the Monsoon Session, veteran TMC leader Saugata Roy said.

Mr. Roy said the Opposition objected to both the procedure adopted for the suspension and the grounds on which it was based.

"When there was a din in the House, the Chair read a suspension notice, and Kalyan Banerjee was suspended for the rest of the session. It was a totally wrong decision, and therefore the Opposition parties went to meet the Speaker," Mr. Roy told reporters.

He said the delegation pointed out that if the Chair's action was based on the altercation between Mr. Banerjee and rebel TMC MP Mitali Bagh, who is among those who joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), it could not be sustained as the House had already been adjourned.

"We want to point out that if the Chair was referring to the altercation between Banerjee and Mitali Bagh, the House was not in session at the time. Microphones were off, there was nobody in the Chair. Neither any notice was given to Kalyan Banerjee nor was he given the chance to defend himself," Mr. Roy said.

"The motion to suspend Shri. Banerjee is out of order as the House was not in session. The rules don't apply to what happened in an empty House. We urge that the suspension is withdrawn," he said.

According to Mr. Roy, the Speaker told the delegation that since the ruling side had moved the motion, he would speak to them and announce his decision on Thursday.

"Our fight will go on," Mr. Roy said, adding that the confrontation began after "some people who left our party commented on Kalyan, and he retorted to it." Mr. Banerjee, meanwhile, lashed out at the rebel MPs.

"What would they do by suspending me? They can't throw me out of the House. They are 20 MPs. Did they even hold a meeting in Kolkata? They don't even have 20 votes in Bengal. They are traitors," he said.

"Today is not the last day, tomorrow is also there, day after tomorrow is also there... After one year this government will fall," Mr. Banerjee added.

Defending the suspension, rebel TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, who is among the MPs who joined the NCPI, alleged Mr. Banerjee had repeatedly used abusive language against women.

"Kalyan Banerjee keeps attacking women, uses foul language and uses abusive language. He slandered a woman MP, so he was suspended," she said.

Mr. Banerjee was suspended for the remainder of the Monsoon Session after the Lok Sabha adopted a motion accusing him of using "unsavoury" language against women members following a heated exchange with rebel TMC MPs in the Lok Sabha chamber. The exchange took place after the House was adjourned amid opposition protests.

The confrontation is the latest flashpoint following the split in the TMC after the party's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, with 20 MPs breaking away to form and join the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) and extending support to the ruling NDA. Mr. Banerjee has remained with the TMC led by Mamata Banerjee.

Published - July 22, 2026 06:53 pm IST