Although the Congress is yet to announce its list of candidates for the upcoming West Bengal polls, veteran Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Friday said he was willing to contest the Assembly polls after a gap of nearly three decades.
Talking to media persons, Adhir Chowdhury said, “My party wants me to fight at Berhampore. As a partyman, I will follow the decision as it is not only my choice but my party’s also. Though I am seasoned with parliamentary politics, the Berhampore Assembly seat comes under the Berhampore Lok Sabha constituency, which I represented earlier. So, I am not an outsider here.”
He then added, “I am a foot soldier of the Congress and will do whatever the party asks me to. Under the current political circumstances in Bengal, the task is to keep the Congress banner flying high, and that’s why the AICC pursued all senior state leaders to contest the polls. While some agreed, others didn’t. I chose to accept the request.”
The Berhampore Assembly seat is currently represented by BJP MLA Subrata Moitra (Kanchan), who has been fielded again by the saffron party. The TMC has nominated Beharampore Municipality Chairperson Naru Gopal Mukherjee for the seat.
Adhir Chowdhury had first contested the West Bengal Assembly polls in 1991 from the Nabagram constituency in the Murshidabad district, but lost to CPI(M) leader Sisir Kumar Sarkar by a margin of around 1,400 votes. He contested from Nabagram again in 1996 and won. He vacated the seat three years later in 1999 to contest the Lok Sabha elections from the Berhampore constituency. After that, Adhir Chowdhury held the Berhampore Lok Sabha seat till 2024, when he was unseated by TMC candidate and former cricketer Yusuf Pathan.
The Congress had contested the 2021 state polls under a seat-sharing adjustment with the Left Front. It had contested 91 seats but had failed to win even a single seat in the 294-member legislative assembly.
According to Congress sources, apart from Adhir Chowdhury, many other senior party leaders will contest the Assembly elections. Former TMC Rajya Sabha MP Mausam Benazir Noor, who recently returned to the Congress, Congress state president Shuvankar Sarkar, and Isha Khan Chowdhury, the lone Congress MP from Bengal, may also fight the Assembly election this time.
Atri Mitra is a highly accomplished Special Correspondent for The Indian Express, bringing over 20 years of experience to his reporting. His work is characterized by deep regional knowledge and a focus on critical administrative and political developments, establishing strong Expertise and Authority in his domain.
Experience
Current Role: Special Correspondent, The Indian Express.
Decades of Experience: Over two decades of extensive reporting experience, primarily covering administration and political news.
Geographical Focus: Holds significant reporting experience from West Bengal, Bihar, and the North-East, providing a comprehensive understanding of the socio-political landscape in these regions.
Key Coverage: Has dedicated more than ten years to covering administration and political news, with a keen focus on political developments in West Bengal.
Electoral Reporting: Demonstrated a commitment to crucial political moments, having covered the 2009 Lok Sabha election and 2010 assembly elections during his time at Anandabazar Patrika, and the 2019 Bihar Lok Sabha election while working with News18-Bangla.
Career Foundation: Began his career at the leading vernacular daily Anandabazar Patrika, where he worked for more than fifteen years, including a three-year stint as the Bihar correspondent.
Education
Advanced Degree: Holds a Master's degree in Economics from Rabindrabharati University, providing an analytical framework for his political and administrative reporting.
Undergraduate Education: Holds a Bachelor's degree from Calcutta University.
Prestigious Alumni: His educational background includes attending esteemed institutions: he is an alumnus of St. Xavier's, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Asrama, Narendrapur.
Atri Mitra's decades of dedicated reporting, substantial focus on political and administrative beats, and solid academic credentials make him a trusted and authoritative source for news and analysis from Eastern and North-Eastern India. ... Read More
