Mamata set to address public meet in Sahagunj on Feb 24

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee will address a public meeting at Dunlop ground in Sahagunj on February 24, within 48 hours of a rally to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the same venue on February 22.

This would be Modi's third visit to the state within a month. He had attended the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji on January 23. Again, on February 7, he had attended a programme at Haldia. On February 24, Modi will inaugurate Dakshineshwar- Noapara metro.

The meeting of Mamata Banerjee is important as by then it is expected that the schedule for 2021 Assembly elections will be announced by the Election Commission of India. Political experts opined that she might publish the list of candidates before the meeting along with the election manifesto of the party.

As Banerjee is a vote catcher, she can bring the election wave in favour of the party. Her speech at the rally will be important both for the party workers, supporters and voters.

Hooghly district was Trinamool's easy pasture in 2016 Assembly elections when the party had bagged 16 out of 18 Assembly seats. Trinamool lost the Pandua seat to CPI (M) while the Chamdani seat was won by veteran Congress leader Abdul Mannan.

Trinamool had suffered in 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Hooghly. The party lost the Hooghly seat and won from Srirampur and Arambag seats. TMC was able to retain its control over 10 seats while BJP was ahead of TMC in 8 seats in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Prabir Ghoshal, TMC MLA from Uttarpara, joined BJP recently. With this backdrop, Banerjee will be addressing the gathering on February 24. She had already addressed a mammoth rally at Pursura on January 25.

Banerjee had already said the election would be on the basis of development. Duare Saarkar, an initiative taken up by the state government has been a great success. More than 2.75 crore people visited the outreach camps. More than 85.13 lakh people already got Swasthya Sathi cards.

She has asked party leaders to bury the hatchet and work together. She has already said the TMC would come to power with 221 seats. Meanwhile, people are waiting anxiously to listen to her on February 24.