The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday announced its candidates for the upcoming by-elections of the Nandigram Assembly constituency in East Midnapore district and Rejinagar Assembly constituency in Murshidabad district of West Bengal.
BJP workers and supporters have already begun gathering to participate in the nomination event, news agency IANS reported. Earlier reporting noted: The BJP on Tuesday named Hasirani Rath, the mother of former aide to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari who died in May, as its candidate for Nandigrambypoll. Earlier reporting noted: The BJP on Tuesday named Hasirani Rath, the mother of former aide to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari who died in May, as its candidate for Nandigram bypoll, and fielded the party’s former Murshidabad district president Sakharav Sarkar from Rejinagar assembly seat.
The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath from Nandigram. She is the mother of late Chandranath Rath, the slain personal assistant of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. The Chief Minister will also be present during the filing of the nomination. He retained the Bhabanipur seat, necessitating a bypoll in Nandigram.
Chandranath Rath was shot dead in Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas district on the evening of May 6 earlier this year. After the puja, Rath is expected to lead a procession of around 20,000 party workers and supporters to the District Magistrate’s office in Haldia, where she will file her nomination. In Bhabanipur, Adhikari defeated his predecessor and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee by a margin of more than 15,000 votes. Earlier reporting noted: The nomination of Rath gives the party’s Nandigram campaign an emotive edge, as her son Chandranath Rath was shot dead in North 24 Parganas, days after the BJP swept to power in West Bengal by defeating the TMC.
Hasirani Rath will offer puja at the Janakinath temple in the Nandigram Assembly constituency before filing her nomination, according to party insiders.
In Murshidabad, former Trinamool Congress legislator Humayun Kabir contested and won from both Naoda and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies as an Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) candidate. he has fielded his son, Gholam Nabi Azad, as the AJUP candidate for the Rejinagar bypoll While Kabir retained Naoda.
Political observers also believe the Trinamool Congress, which is now divided into three factions, may not have a clear advantage in the seat. Because of Suvendu Adhikari’s presence there, nandigram has been considered a virtual BJP stronghold since 2021, largely. Political observers, therefore, do not expect the bye-election to pose a major challenge to the saffron camp. Because of the constituency’s demography, rejinagar, however, is expected to be a tougher contest for the BJP.
