CPI(M) announces candidate for Howrah Lok Sabha by-election

KOLKATA: West Bengal CPI(M) on Tuesday fielded it's state secretariat member Sreedip Bhattacharjee for the June 2 by-elections to the Howrah lok sabha elections. Trinamool Congress has already fielded footballer Prasun Banerjee for the election. The Congress will also contest the seat, but yet to announce it's candidate. This time by-elections in Howrah will be a triangular fight.


The seat fell vacant on April 25 when Ambika Banerjee who won the seat on a Trinamool Congress ticket in 2009, had died. The Election Commission on May 3 had announced the date for holding the by-elections and Mamata has raised questions about the way the Commission had declare the poll date.

Mamata is in a disadvantageous position to face the election after the Saradha scam broke out in Bengal and two of her MPs-Kunal Ghosh and Srinjoy Basu's names have got involved with the multi-crore scam which has already rocked the state as well as the ruling Trinamool Congress. The names of some of Mamata's ministers are also being heard for their alleged involvement with the scam. Naturally, Mamata is in a tight spot and she will have to face a very tough situation to retain the Howrah lok sabha seat this time.

Another added problem for Mamata will be the Congress which will contest the by-election this time. Mamata had got Congress votes in 2009 when the last parliamentary elections had taken place as she had an electoral adjustment with the Congress at that time and the Congress did not contest the seat. But now Congress will contest the seat and will certainly bring a split in the anti-CPI(M) vote bank which will surely harm Mamata's prospects for retaining the seat.

Mamata had won all the seven assembly segments of Bally, Howrah North, Howrah Central, Shibpur, Howrah South, Sankrail and Panchla which constitute the Howrah lok sabha seat during the assembly elections held in 2011. Naturaly, Trinamool Congress can expect to retain the Howrah lok sabha seat this time too. But the Saradha fiasco and involvement of some key Trinamool Congress MPs, ministers and MLAs has made Mamata's job to retain the seat tougher this time.

The opposition CPI(M) is trying to corner Mamata and ensure her defeat in the Howrah by-election and for that the Marxists are constantly demanding a CBI investigation into the Saradha scam as they anticipate the ruling Trinamool Congress will be exposed for their alleged nexus with the tainted group chief Sudipta Sen once the CBI holds the probe. Interestingly, the CBI on Tuesday filed a petition before the Calcutta High Court saying that they are ready to take up the investigation and demanded a logistic and infrastructural support from the state government.