Mamata to declare TMC's list of candidates today

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee will announce the list of candidates for all the 294 constituencies on Friday.

It has been learnt that she would contest from Nandigram only and party veteran Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay is likely to contest from Bhowanipore, her constituency.

Banerjee will release the election Manifesto based on the works carried out since 2011. Already, the party has released the report card of the projects taken by the state government since 2011.

Debashis Kumar, coordinator, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is likely to contest from the Rashbehari Assembly seat and Purnendu Bose from Uttarpara. It was learnt that former Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha would contest from Barrackpore while Debangshu Bhattacharya is likely to stand from Bally. Trinamool is likely to field some people from the cultural world as well.

The TMC is likely to field 25 new faces after 15 of its party MLAs joined BJP; while three sitting MLAs, namely, Tamonash Ghosh, Mrigen Maity and Sukumar Hansda died. The party has decided not to field leaders who are more than 80 years old. Rabiranjan Chatterjee, Brajamohan Majumder, Jatu Lahiri and Rabindranath Bhattacharya are more than 80 years old while actor turned politician Chiranjit has expressed his unwillingness to contest the election. It was learnt that many non-performing MLAs will be dropped this time.

Meanwhile, Partha Chatterjee, Trinamool secretary general, Firhad Hakim, Subrata Bakshi, party's state president and Abhishek Banerjee, the party's youth wing president met the councillors of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. It was decided that the party would put up large-size cut-outs of Banerjee in all the 144 wards under the KMC. The flags and cut-outs will be put up before March 7 when Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the BJP meeting at the Brigade Parade ground.

It has also been learnt that the leaders had told the councillors that the party would not tolerate any resentment after the names of the candidates are announced. "It is immaterial who is contesting as it is a fight between Mamata Banerjee and the Opposition parties. She is the candidate in all the 294 seats and keeping this in mind, the councillors will have to pump in maximum effort to ensure the smooth victory of the candidates who will be fighting in their respective areas," the leaders maintained.