Bypolls: Oppn may harp on RG Kar incident; TMC to focus on dev works

Kolkata: With Opposition parties like BJP, Congress and CPI(M) trying to capitalise on the RG Kar incident as an instrument to garner their votes in the by-elections in six Assembly seats running on negative campaigns, the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) during their campaign will rely mainly on the development works carried out by the Mamata Banerjee government.

All three Opposition parties had failed to make any significant impression in all electoral battles in the state in the recent past.

This time they are trying hard to make a difference by stressing upon the RG Kar incident as one of their main agendas to turn electoral fortunes.

They also made a strategy to channel the public sentiment created immediately after the incident. The BJP is in a desperate bid to retain the Madarihat seat. For Congress and CPI(M), it is a litmus test as they failed to forge any pre-poll alliance.

Congress and CPI(M) had a seat-sharing alliance since the 2021 Assembly polls.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, there was no formal understanding but the Left did not contest in Congress bastions Berhampore and Malda South, both won by Congress.

The two parties also fought the 2024 Lok Sabha polls together.

Senior Trinamool leader Kumal Ghosh has said that the Opposition was trying their best to misguide and confuse the voters by misusing this RG Kar issue but his party is confident that the voters will realise the facts.

Trinamool Congress has set a target of winning all six seats.

The ruling party in the state during the 2021 Assembly elections won 5 out of these 6 seats except Madarihat where BJP had won. It is now a challenge for the BJP to retain its seat Madarihat as they failed to win a single Assembly seat in Bengal by-elections which have taken place after the 2021 Assembly elections.

The TMC set a target of securing at least 51 per cent votes in each booth under all these six constituencies. Hence, its leaders are focussing on the development works and social schemes of the state government.

Trinamool has prepared its election strategy after examining the booth-wise reports submitted by the booth-wise leaders who had handled the party’s electoral battle during the Lok Sabha elections.

The bypolls will happen in Naihati, Haroa, Midnapore, Taldangra, Sitai and Madarihat on November 13.

While Naihati is an urban centre close to Kolkata, Haroa is a minority-dominated one. Taldangra has a significant tribal population while Sitai has a chunk of minority and Rajbanshi votes.

For the BJP, winning Madarihat will be a confidence booster after its performance fell in the region during the Lok Sabha elections.

Meanwhile, a controversy erupted on Monday after senior officials of prominent football clubs in city endorsed TMC candidate for Naihati bypolls, Sanat Dey.

TMC took to X to highlight Dey’s well-known passion for football, sharing a video featuring senior officials from Kolkata’s foremost football clubs — Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting Club vouching for Dey’s credibility and reliability as a local-level sports administrator in Naihati.

“Our MLA candidate, Shri Sanat Dey’s love for football is known to everyone in Naihati. Be it Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, or Mohammedan Sporting Club, his immense contribution towards maintaining a healthy sporting culture in Naihati is appreciated by them all!” the TMC posted on X.