The Bharatiya Janata Pary (BJP) has scoffed at claims made by some senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders projecting Abhishek Banerjee as the next chief minister (CM) of West Bengal

"By the time when he comes of age, the TMC will be history and will be cast into the Bay of Bengal by the people of the state," said Sukanto Majumdar, state BJP president. Majumdar said that the TMC would not survive the 2026 Assembly Election.

Everyone has a freedom to make his or her suggestions and think freely. TMC leaders are no exception to this. They may nurture dreams but truth be told, the people of West Bengal have made up their minds and will throw out the TMC in Bay of Bengal in the 2026 elections. There will be no TMC in Bengal," he said.

His statement came amid the ongoing debate in the TMC over who will succeed Mamata Banerjee in the state. The BJP leader's statement also came at a time when number of senior leaders openly backed the candidature of Abhishek Banerjee, the current party general secretary and nephew of the CM.

Supporting Abhishek, Kunal Ghosh, TMC spokesperson said, "Abhishek is not a contender. He is a successor." Ghosh in an online post wrote that Abhishek was his leader and was destined to be the next CM of Bengal. Calling him to be a rising star, who deserved to be nurtured and kept under constant watch, Ghosh wrote, "In the course of time, after Mamata Di, Abhishek will one day become the CM of Bengal," as he was the real "bearer and carrier" of the chief minister's legacy.

Even senior leader such as Saugato Roy, who has criticised by many for being a burden on the party and for cutting short ambitions of junior leaders, too said, "Abhishek is the best person after Mamata Banerjee and is the future leader of the party."

Both Roy's and Ghosh's remarks comes at the heels of an observation made by Kalyan Banerjee, another senior leader and MP, who sought to put to rest what many a senior leaders have termed an "uncomfortable debate," hinting at the point that Mamata Banerjee not going to quit any time soon.

He hammered home the point citing the example of the newly elected American president Donald Trump. "Age is not a factor. Trump's election has proved that. If at the age of 78 he can get elected then it once again reinforces the point that if a person is capable of working and continues to performs and then age is no bar for him," the MP said.

The present debate not only comes amid continuous churning inside the party for the past several months and the wake of a series of controversies, including the rural housing scam, the cash-for-job scam, RG Kar sexual assault and murder case, etc..

The debate reached a fever pitch some months ago forcing the chief minister put it to rest by the CM. "Both younger and older generation will work together to serve the people. The younger people will respect the elders and the elders will encourage the juniors," she said.

Referring to the issue the Left leadership said that the controversy was being created by the TMC to divert attention from the real issues. "It is their internal matter. Who becomes the leader is their problem. They are making this a public issue in order to arrest the gradual alienation," said Sujan Chakraborty, CPI(M) leader.