During a grand gathering at Kolkata's Brigade Parade Ground, the Trinamool Congress made a significant announcement on Sunday, revealing the names of 42 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Among the notable figures featured in this lineup was former cricketer Yusuf Pathan, who has been nominated to contest from the Baharampur constituency. Currently, this seat is held by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
With the Congress yet to announce its candidate for Baharampur, speculation looms over Chowdhury's potential re-candidacy, given his historical prominence having represented the constituency on five occasions.
Responding to Trinamool's nomination of Yusuf Pathan as a Lok Sabha candidate, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury expressed skepticism, suggesting that if the party truly intended to honor the former cricketer, they should have considered him for a Rajya Sabha seat instead.
Chowdhury implied that Mamata Banerjee's motivations behind nominating Yusuf Pathan might not be entirely altruistic, insinuating that his candidature could be a strategic maneuver aimed at attracting voters and undermining the Congress, thus indirectly benefiting the BJP.
Chowdhury further suggested that if Banerjee genuinely wished to acknowledge Pathan's contributions, she should have negotiated with the INDIA bloc to secure him a Rajya Sabha seat from Gujarat, his native state.
Trinamool Congress unveiled its complete list of Lok Sabha candidates during the rally, with Abhishek Banerjee, the party's MP, announcing the names as Mamata Banerjee, the party supremo, and West Bengal Chief Minister, paraded with the candidates at the venue, amidst an extensive gathering.
In addition to Yusuf Pathan, the roster included several other prominent personalities such as Bollywood icon Shatrugan Sinha, fielded from Asansol. The list also featured numerous figures from the Tollywood industry, with actress Rachana Banerjee contesting from Hooghly, pitted against BJP candidate Locket Chatterjee.
Popular Tollywood actors June Malia, Deepak Adhikari (known as 'Dev'), and Satabdi Roy were also included in Trinamool's list, with June contesting from Medinipur, Dev from Ghatal, and Shatabdi from Birbhum.
Furthermore, Mahua Moitra, who faced expulsion from the Lok Sabha in December amid the cash-for-query controversy, has been nominated to contest from Krishnanagar, the same constituency she previously represented before her removal from Parliament.
Two notable absences from the list were Nusrat Jahan and Mimi Chakraborty, who represented the Basirhat and Jadavpur seats, respectively, in the 2019 elections. They have been replaced by Nurul Islam and Saayoni Ghosh, respectively, for the upcoming polls.
With a total of 18 women candidates featured in the list, the Trinamool Congress showcased a mix of seasoned politicians and fresh faces, signaling its intent to contest the elections vigorously across various constituencies in West Bengal and beyond.
Moreover, Mamata Banerjee announced Trinamool Congress's intention to contest in Uttar Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Assam, expanding its electoral footprint beyond West Bengal. She disclosed that discussions had taken place with Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav regarding a potential alliance in Uttar Pradesh, focusing on securing one seat in the state.
