BJP banks on known faces as second list of candidates is out

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday announced its second list of candidates for 112 Assembly constituencies in West Bengal, while effecting a minor change in its first list, as the party steps up preparations for the upcoming two-phase state elections.

With this, the BJP has declared candidates for 256 out of the total 294 seats, leaving 38 constituencies yet to be announced. The party had earlier released its first list for 144 seats. In a key change, the BJP replaced its candidate for Bishnupur, fielding Biswajit Kha in place of Agnishwar Naskar. Among the prominent names in the second list, actor-turned-politician Hiran Chatterjee has been fielded from Shyampur in Howrah. In Sonarpur South, BJP’s Roopa Ganguly is set to face Trinamul Congress (TMC) candidate Lovely Maitra, setting the stage for a high-profile contest.

Advertisement

Former Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh has been nominated from Noapara, where he will take on Trinamul Chhatra Parishad president Trinankur Bhattacharya. In Barrackpore, lawyer Kaustav Bagchi has been fielded by the BJP against TMC’s star candidate Raj Chakraborty. The party, however, is yet to announce its candidate for Panihati, a constituency that remains conspicuously absent from the second list. Speculation had been rife that the BJP might field the mother of the doctor, who was killed in the RG Kar hospital rape-murder case, but no official confirmation has been made so far.

Former Union minister and ex-Cooch Behar MP Nisith Pramanik has been fielded from Mathabhanga. Other notable candidates include Papiya Adhikari from Tollygunge, Sharbori Mukherjee from Jadavpur, and Priyanka Tibrewal from Entally. In North 24-Parganas, the BJP has fielded former IPS officer Rajesh Kumar from Jagaddal and Debdas Mondal from Habra. Rekha Patra, a face of the Sandeshkhali movement, has been nominated from Hingalganj, while Sanat Sardar will contest from Sandeshkhali. In Kolkata, Indranil Khan, state president of the BJP Yuva Morcha, has been fielded from Behala West against TMC’s Ratna Chatterjee. Sunil Maharaj will contest from Behala East, while Ritesh Tiwari and Tapas Roy have been nominated from Kashipur-Belgachia and Maniktala, respectively.

The party has retained sitting MLAs in key Matua-dominated constituencies such as Bangaon North, Bangaon South and Gaighata. In East Midnapore’s Egra, Dibyendu Adhikari, brother of Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, has been fielded. The second list includes 20 women candidates. Polling for the 294-member Assembly will be held in two phases on 23 April and 29 April, with counting scheduled for 4 May.

The Trinamul Congress has already announced candidates for 291 seats, while the Left parties also released their second list earlier in the day.