Nominations to close on January 27, Congress yet to decide on candidate

Between the two seats, Bongaon has hogged all limelight because of the division of Motua votes and Trinamool minister Manjul Krishna Thakur switching to the BJP. While Trinamool’s Mamatabala Thakur has already filed her nomination from Bongaon, BJP’s Subrata Thakur (Manjul’s son) and the CPM’s Debesh Das are set to file their papers in a day or two.

The Trinamool, after Mamata’s directive that BJP candidate’s deposit must be forfeited, has plunged into the poll fray. It has launched a door-to-door campaign to regain the seat held by its MP Kapil Krishna Thakur, whose death has led to the bypoll. Trinamool candidate Mamatabala Thakur is Kapil Krishna’s wife.

When contacted, state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chaudhury — while maintaining that the party will not ally with the Trinamool under any circumstances — said a candidate will soon be fielded from Bongaon. “There is no question of giving TMC a walk over. We will surely field a candidate there,” he said.

However, former state Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya and former MLA Abdul Mannan said they have no idea about the party’s candidate for the bypoll. “I will have to check,” said Bhattacharya.

Bongaon Lok Sabha constituency with around 15 lakh voters was created in 2007. While in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the winner Kapil Krishna Thakur got 5.51 lakh votes and Congress’ Ila Mondal bagged 43,866 votes, in the 2009 elections, Govinda Nashkar of the TMC won. The Congress and Trinamool were allies then.

CPM declares its candidates

The CPM on Thursday announced its candidate for the upcoming by-election on one parliamentary and one assembly seat.
“The CPM candidate for Bongaon Lok Sabha seat is Dr Debes Das and for Krishnagunj Assembly seat is Dr Apurba Biswas,” Left Front chairman Biman Bose said at a press conference.

He also said that the party would observe January 23 as Desh Prem Divas on the occasion of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s 118th birth anniversary. Biman informed that he has also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare January 23 as Desh Prem Divas.

On his party’s protest programmes against inviting US President Barack Obama as the chief guest for the Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi, he said: “Six Left Front parties would put up several protest programmes on January 24 and 26. Party would observe January 30 — the day Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated (in 1948) — as Communal Harmony Day. We will also protest against the Central government’s attempt to project Gandhiji’s killer Nathuram Godse as a hero.”

Referring to the recent case of Birbhum police’s atrocity on a woman, Bose said that violence against women has become very common and that the 13 parties of Left Front would soon put up several protest programmes across the state. (ENS)