Bengal Assembly bypolls: While TMC hopes for clean sweep in 6 seats, BJP hopes to cash in on protests against ruling faction

Out of the six seats, Madarihat and Sitai are successful bluish West Bengal and the different 4 — Taldangra, Medinipur, Haroa, and Naihati — are successful confederate West Bengal. In 2021, 5 of these were bagged by the TMC, portion the BJP won successful 1 seat. All six were vacated aft their holders won the Lok Sabha elections held earlier this year.

“We person spot successful the people. We are hopeful that radical person voted for (Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee’s improvement initiatives successful Bengal. We expect to triumph six retired of six tomorrow,” said Kunal Ghosh, TMC wide caput and spokesperson.

A elder Trinamool Congress person said, “It seems similar conscionable six assembly seats, but the timing of the by-elections is important to us. We are hopeful that we volition triumph each six seats. If that happens, past it volition beryllium wide to america that the R G Kar protests had nary interaction connected the minds of the voters. The protests person besides fizzled out. Taking that into account, our enactment main Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee volition hole the roadworthy representation for the 2026 Assembly polls.”

Interestingly, Mamata Banerjee held a gathering of the party’s elder leaders astatine her residence successful Kalighat connected Monday. Meanwhile, enactment fig 2 and MP Abhishek Banerjee is preparing for a large reshuffle successful the ranks and files, which volition beryllium announced successful December.

For the BJP, adjacent if it wins 1 oregon 2 seats retired of the six, it volition beryllium a large boost for the party, which won 77 retired of the 213 seats successful the 2021 Assembly elections.

“If we tin clasp Madarihat and triumph 1 oregon 2 more, it volition beryllium an awesome amusement for us. During the by-polls, the TMC and authorities constabulary worked together. A triumph volition amusement that adjacent aft each the likelihood against us, radical are with us,” said a elder BJP leader.

The CPIM-led Left Front did not signifier an confederation with Congress this clip but instead, depended connected a Left-ISF coalition. In 5 of the by-poll seats, 5 parties of the Left Front filed candidates (including CPIML (Liberation) successful one) and 1 spot was fixed to the ISF.

Notably, portion the TMC maintained its dominance successful the Lok Sabha elections this year, the BJP was up of them successful 2 of these assembly constituencies: Madarihat and Medinipur, by 9,000 and 11,000 votes, respectively. On the different hand, the TMC was up successful Sitai (by 29,000), Naihati (by 15,000), Taldangra (by 8,000), and Haroa (by 1,10,000).