Kolkata: Amid a row over the party symbol, the Mamata Banerjee-loyalist bloc of Trinamool has named grassroots worker and schoolteacher Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) as its Nandigram bypoll candidate, while picking veteran Rabiul Alam Chowdhury for the Rejinagar bypoll. The party has also fielded Abdul Salam, a former college vice-principal, as its candidate for the Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam.
In the 2023 panchayat elections, Pradhan unsuccessfully contested a panchayat samiti seat from Nandigram II. Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev, Trinamool’s most important Assam face, resigned from the party to join BJP following the May 4 election results.
Former state minister Akhil Giri was previously considered for the nomination at Nandigram – a Suvendu Adhikari bastion which the CM vacated after picking Bhowanipore as his seat, according to Trinamool seniors. However, after discussions, the party decided to pick Pradhan. Giri, meanwhile, remarked, “If the Election Commission does any injustice to Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress, we will approach the Supreme Court.
Giri visited Kalighat on Sunday to meet Mamata Banerjee .