KOLKATA: With by-elections to six Assembly seats in West Bengal scheduled for November 13, the Opposition parties have decided to corner the ruling Trinamool Congress over the RG Kar incident, in which a 31-year-old post graduate student was raped and murdered while on duty. The EC announced bypolls for Sitai (SC), Madarihat (ST), Naihati, Haroa, Medinipur, and Taldangra, as their MLAs have contested and won seats in the Lok Sabha.
Senior Congress leaders have claimed that the people are disturbed by the RG Kar issue. They are frustrated with the TMC’s inaction, especially concerning known medical scams occurring in the state-run medical colleges, and are questioning why the party has not taken action against those responsible.
The CPM leaders also plan to raise the issue during their campaign. Party leader Shatarup Ghosh stated, “The public is aware that the TMC has engaged in mass-scale corruption and is disillusioned with how the RG Kar issue has been handled. The situation has also highlighted the government’s efforts to protect the responsible.”
This comes at a time when the Trinamool is preparing for the upcoming bypolls in six Assembly constituencies, five of which they won in the 2021 Assembly elections.
Despite significant challenges since their landslide Lok Sabha victory this year, particularly related to the RG Kar case and the subsequent protests, the TMC leaders remain optimistic about the bypolls.
A senior TMC leader said, “Our image has indeed been tarnished, but that doesn’t mean our election machinery is weakened. It remains intact, and this movement has little impact in the rural areas of West Bengal, it is primarily urban-based.
The only area affected is the Naihati votebank. Otherwise, our vote machinery continues to operate effectively. In bypolls, the ruling parties always have an advantage. Therefore, we are are also expecting to achieve significant margins in our victory.”
Didi’s party won 5 of 6 seats in 2021 elections
Six Assembly constituencies — Sitai (SC), Madarihat (ST), Naihati, Haroa, Medinipur, and Taldangra — will go to polls on November 13. The ruling Trinamool Congress won five of the six seats in 2021. Opposition leaders have claimed that the people are frustrated with the TMC’s inaction, especially in medical scams in state-run hospitals.