• Source:JND
HighLights
  1. Mamata Banerjee will not contest Nandigram bypoll this time.
  2. Sanchita Pradhan Dey named TMC candidate for Nandigram seat.
  3. Rabiul Alam Chowdhury to contest Rejinagar by-election for TMC.

Mamata Banerjee entered West Bengal’s Assembly politics in 2011 and has remained at the centre of the state’s major electoral battles. Nandigram has been particularly important to her political journey, with the 2007 land acquisition movement becoming a key turning point before the Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011. 

This time, however, the TMC Chief will not contest the Nandigram bypoll, with her faction choosing Sanchita Pradhan Dey for the seat.

"Our leader Mamata Banerjee nominated me as the candidate from the Trinamool Congress yesterday. I welcome it and have accepted it with humility as a party worker. Any election is difficult. It is not just Nandigram; elections are difficult everywhere. The senior leadership will decide, and the party workers will also stand by me."

Who Is Sanchita Pradhan Dey?

Dey is a school teacher at Boyal Primary School in Nandigram and a Trinamool Congress worker who has been associated with the party since 2008. She also served as a Panchayat Samiti member between 2018 and 2023.

She had lost her teaching job after the cancellation of appointments involving 26,000 teachers in the alleged recruitment scam. She later got her job back following a Supreme Court order.

Why Sanchita For Nandigram?

Dey’s selection comes after speculation that Mamata could return to the Assembly by contesting the Nandigram bypoll. The possibility gained further attention after former Bengal minister Akhil Giri visited Mamata’s Kalighat residence, with his name also being discussed for the seat.

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The choice of Dey is also significant because of her background as a teacher affected by the recruitment controversy. Her association with Nandigram and the TMC’s grassroots organisation has now put her at the centre of the party’s campaign for the seat.

TMC Names Candidates For Both Seats

The Mamata Banerjee-led faction announced Dey as its Nandigram candidate and Rabiul Alam Chowdhury for Rejinagar.

"All India Trinamool Congress, under the guidance and inspiration of our Hon'ble Chairperson Smt Mamata Banerjee, is pleased to announce the candidates for the upcoming Nandigram and Rejinagar by-elections," the party said.

It added, "We wish Smt Sanchita Pradhan (Dey) and Shri Rabiul Alam Chowdhury the very best for this journey. May they carry forward the hopes and aspirations of the people with strength and determination."

ALSO READ: Mamata Banerjee Skips Bypoll Race As Candidates Announced For Nandigram, Rejinagar In Bengal

The by-elections were necessitated after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari vacated the Nandigram seat in Purba Medinipur district while AJUP founder Humayun Kabir did the same for Rejinagar in Murshidabad.

There were anticipations that after defeat in the 2026 polls, Mamata would try to make her way into the West Bengal Assembly through the bypolls.


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