‘Parking place for TMC defectors’: Jairam Ramesh takes swipe at Amit Shah over new Arunachal party

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on November 3 took a dig at Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the proposed formation of a new political outfit, the Arunachal Janta Party, alleging that it was part of a political strategy to accommodate defectors from the Trinamool Congress (TMC).

Ramesh shared a public notice issued by the proposed party on X, claiming that the move was orchestrated by the "self-styled Chanakya". He also drew a parallel with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), which he alleged had been revived as a "parking place" for TMC defectors.

According to the public notice, the Arunachal Janta Party was formed on October 16, 2026, with its head office at 015, Dokum Colony, Akash Deep, in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh. The party has proposed to apply for registration with the Election Commission of India under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

The notice invites objections to the proposed registration, stating that any person wishing to raise an objection must submit it in writing to the Election Commission of India at Nirvachan Sadan, Ashoka Road, New Delhi, by December 3, 2026.

Taking aim at the growing number of registered unrecognised political parties, Ramesh claimed that India has 734 such outfits, which reported a combined income of more than Rs 1,100 crore in 2024-25.

"Half of that amount went to 29 such parties in Gujarat alone," he alleged.

The Congress leader's remarks come months after the Nationalist Citizens Party of India, a registered unrecognised political party founded in October 2022 and based in West Bengal, joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Following the TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, 20 of its 27 Lok Sabha MPs reportedly left the party and joined the NCPI, extending support to the BJP-led NDA.