Bhowanipore bypoll: Trinamool launches door-to-door campaign

KOLKATA: A day after Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee asked her party workers to take up the Bhowanipore by-election seriously, MLAs and supporters launched a door-to-door campaign urging people to support the party supremo on Thursday.

Of the eight Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) wards, seven wards (63, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74 and 84) have TMC councilors (now coordinators). Shamima Rehan Khan, is a Left Front councillor in ward 77.

Madan Mitra, Trinamool Congress MLA from Kamarhati—who is a voter of Bhowanipore Assembly seat— went to a private club and distributed copies of Jago Bangla, mouthpiece of Trinamool Congress as part of his campaign programme. He also took part in a house-to-house programme.

Banerjee had said at the workers' conference that senior party leaders like Subrata Mukherjee, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, Subrata Bakshi, Partha Chatterjee and Aroop Biswas would take part in the door-to-door campaign. There will be street corners and no central rally will be taken out in view of the pandemic.

Sandip Bakshi, coordinator of ward 72, began a door-to-door campaign on Thursday morning. He went to the houses on Benoy Bose Road and Bakul Bagan Row.

The wall writing in Bhowanipore is about to be completed. Party MLAs Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay and Madan Mitra took part in wall writing to encourage party workers.

Subrata Mukhejee said steps had been taken to ensure that Mamata Banerjee wins with a record margin. He will take part in a door-to-door campaign in ward 63, where Trinamool Congress coordinator is Susmita Bhattacharya. The leaders have asked the workers to maintain cool and not to fall in the trap of BJP.

Meanwhile, CPI(M) fielded Srijib Biswas against Mamata Banerjee. Biswas was the election agent of Congress candidate Mohammad Sahadab Khan in the 2021 Assembly election. Khan got only 5221 votes. Over the years, the CPI(M)'s organisation in Bhowanipore witnessed massive erosion.

Many old timers have joined Forward Bloc. Many of the CPI(M) old timers left politics. The party has failed to get people to write walls.

The BJP is yet to field its candidate as all the state leaders have refused to face Mamata Banerjee. Banerjee will file her nomination on Friday.

Earlier, Banerjee urged the party workers on Wednesday not to become complacent as the by-election was a preparation for the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

"Do not suffer from any kind of complacency. It has been found that in Bhowanipore during by-election the polling is around 40 per cent. The party workers often suffer from over-confidence. Give it up. Work seriously on the day of election and ensure that people go to the polling station to cast their votes. Remember, this is the preparation for the 2024 Lok Sabha election," she had maintained. She said all the polling agents should complete two doses of vaccination.

Baishanar Chattopadhyay will be her election agent.