Mamata’s backing of Congress in Nandigram bypoll signals possible reset in Bengal opposition politics
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has pledged support to a Congress candidate in the Nandigram bypoll, signaling a potential shift in opposition politics. This move is seen as a tactical effort to consolidate anti-BJP votes amid internal party challenges.
Why it matters
This realignment could significantly impact the political landscape in West Bengal and the broader national opposition alliance.
Former West Bengal Chief Minister’s support to the Congress candidate in the Nandigram Assembly bypoll is a striking reversal of decades of political rivalry, observers feel, signalling a possible recalibration of opposition politics in the State at a time when the TMC is battling its deepest organisational crisis.
Ms. Banerjee's decision to back Milan Pradhan came hours after her faction's nominee, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew from the October 6 contest following a meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari in Kolkata.
The Election Commission had, meanwhile, frozen the Trinamool Congress' traditional name and ‘Jora Ghash Phul’ symbol amid an internal party dispute, allotting Ms. Banerjee's faction and her dissidents separate names and symbols for the upcoming bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar.
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