Bengal Bypolls Turn Into Contest for Opposition Space

KOLKATA:

The October 6 by-elections to Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal have assumed wider political significance, with the Congress, Left and rival Trinamool Congress factions seeking to establish their position in the opposition space against the ruling BJP.

The two constituencies are located in Purba Medinipur and Murshidabad districts respectively. The contests come amid a major organisational rupture within the Trinamool Congress, with rival factions led by Mamata Banerjee and Arup Roy fighting over the party’s political and organisational inheritance.

The Election Commission has frozen the original TMC name and symbol amid the dispute. The Banerjee faction has been allotted the name “Mamata All India Trinamool Congress” and a footballer symbol, while the rival group has been allotted the name “Democratic Trinamool Congress” and an envelope symbol.

In Nandigram, Mamata Banerjee’s faction initially fielded Sanchita Pradhan Dey, who later withdrew. Banerjee subsequently extended support to Congress candidate Milan Pradhan. Mr. Pradhan was arrested in connection with cases relating to the 2007 anti-land acquisition movement in Nandigram and remanded in judicial custody.

The rebel TMC faction has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque.

The Congress and the Left are also attempting to recover political ground they had lost to the Trinamool Congress over the years. Congress leader Pradip Bhattacharya said the party should seek to occupy the political space of voters opposed to the BJP, including minority voters.

In Rejinagar, the contest involves the two rival TMC factions, Congress, CPI(M), Aam Janata Unnayan Party and BJP. The seat has a substantial minority electorate, making the contest significant for assessing whether the traditional support base associated with the TMC remains consolidated following the party split.

The Mamata faction’s candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury had initially announced his withdrawal, citing pressure on workers and difficulties in communicating the faction’s new identity and symbol to voters. He later reversed the decision after speaking with Ms. Banerjee.

The rival faction has fielded Safiuzzaman Sheikh, while Congress has nominated Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi and CPI(M) Syed Asad Ali. AJUP has fielded Ghulam Nabi Azad and the BJP has nominated Sakharav Sarkar.

The political background of the bypolls is significant. The Trinamool Congress emerged from a split in the Congress in 1998 and later expanded its base through the Singur and Nandigram anti-land acquisition movements, eventually ending the Left Front’s 34-year rule in 2011.

The present contest has created a different political configuration, with the TMC itself divided and the Congress and Left attempting to recover sections of their earlier voter bases.

Political analysts cited in the report have described the bypolls as a contest for the opposition space against the BJP, rather than merely a battle over two Assembly seats.

The BJP, meanwhile, is contesting both constituencies and has said it expects to benefit from the divisions among its opponents.

The October 6 polling and October 9 counting will provide an electoral indication of how the rival political formations perform in the two constituencies amid the ongoing reorganisation of West Bengal politics.