Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress faction's candidate for the Rejinagar bypoll, has withdrawn his nomination, a day after the faction's Nandigram candidate also pulled out of the race.
Chowdhury has reportedly said that workers are not being allowed to campaign on the ground and are facing pressure, with many also being arrested.
Chowdhury's withdrawal comes a day after Sanchita Pradhan Dey, the Nandigram bypoll candidate of the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress faction, withdrew her nomination on Friday, hours after meeting West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
Pradhan Dey, a teacher, met Adhikari at the state secretariat Nabanna on Friday afternoon, accompanied by her husband Satyajit, sources said. She later withdrew her nomination, leaving the Mamata All India Trinamool Congress without a candidate in Nandigram.
The development came amid a dramatic reshaping of the Nandigram contest after the Election Commission barred both rival factions from using the All India Trinamool Congress name and its traditional twin-flowers-on-grass symbol.
On Friday, the poll panel allotted the Mamata Banerjee-led faction the name "Mamata All India Trinamool Congress" and a new symbol, while the rival faction was allotted the name "Democratic Trinamool Congress".