Trinamool names Nandigram, Rejinagar bypoll candidates as Mamata sits out
Trinamool Congress announced candidates for the October 6 Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls, ending speculation that Mamata Banerjee would contest.
The Trinamool Congress on Sunday announced its candidates for the Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly bypolls, putting an end to speculation that party chairperson and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would contest from Nandigram.
Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) has been fielded from Nandigram, while Rabiul Alam Chowdhury will contest from Rejinagar. Voting in the two south Bengal constituencies is scheduled for October 6, with nominations closing on September 16.
The party also said Abdul Salam will contest the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency in Assam.
The candidates were declared a day after the rival faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee said it would not field candidates if Ms. Banerjee chose to contest from Nandigram. Ms. Banerjee had lost the Nandigram seat to Suvendu Adhikari by a narrow margin in 2021.
The bypolls come amid a dispute between the Mamata-led group and the Ritabrata Banerjee faction over the party's symbol of grass and twin flowers. Leaders of both groups met Election Commission officials in Delhi to stake their claim. The Ritabrata Banerjee faction has said it will field candidates as independents if the Commission does not allot it the Trinamool symbol.
The contest has also strained opposition unity, with nearly every opposition party putting up candidates. The CPI(M)-led Left Front has nominated Sayeed Asad Aliu from Rejinagar and Shanti Gopal Giri from Nandigram, while the Congress has named Mohd Abdullahil Kafi for Rejinagar and Milan Pradhan for Nandigram.
After the Trinamool Congress's defeat in the 2026 Assembly polls, the party was left with 80 MLAs, more than 65 of whom have sided with Ritabrata Banerjee.
The Nandigram bypoll follows Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's decision to give up the seat, which he had won along with Bhabanipur. Rejinagar fell vacant after Aam Janata Unnayan Party leader Humayun Kabir, who had won both Naoda and Rejinagar, relinquished the latter. His son, Golam Nabi Azad, is the AJUP candidate from Rejinagar.