KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress registered a landslide victory in two Lok Sabha and one Vidhan Sabha seats in Bengal bypolls on Tuesday. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has hailed the victory as public opinion against demonetisation.
Trinamool candidate Dibyendu Adhikari won by 4,97,525 votes in Tamluk constituency, winning all the seven Assembly segments. He doubled the margin of victory since April 2016, when his elder brother
and present transport minister Suvendu Adhikari won by a margin of 2,46,481 votes.
In former CPM stronghold Manteswar Vidhan Sabha seat, Trinamool candidate Saikat Panja won by a margin of 1,27,127 votes, garnering 67% of polled votes. This seat was a huge gain of the ruling party
as the party had won Manteswar for the first time by a slim margin of 706 votes in April 2016.
In Coochbehar Lok Sabha seat, Trinamool candidate Partha Pratim Ray won by a margin of 4,13,241 votes. Securing 3,81,133 votes, BJP emerged runners-up in this north Bengal seat, gaining some
inroads by winning in Coochbehar North and Coochbehar South Assembly segments. Forward Bloc, for whom Coochbehar was a traditional fort, had to be satisfied with third position and just over 87,000 votes.
Hailing the victory as a result of public ire against demonetisation move, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee announced that the party will launch district, block and panchayat-level agitation
in West Bengal from Wednesday against demonetisation move.
“Our victory shows harassment of people in the name of attacking black money, instead of trying to bring stashed black money from Swiss Bank will create adverse public opinion,” she said before leaving
for Delhi where she will start nationwide campaign against demonetisation from Jantar Mantar on Wednesday. Her campaign will coincide with UP and Punjab poll campaigning.
Addressing a presser after the victory, Trinamool leader Partha Chatterjee said:“Congress had long back being decimated, then CPM was decimated, now ‘people’s rebellion’ has destroyed ragtag Bengal BJP,” he said.
“People will not go with anti-poor policies like demonetisation,” Dibyendu Adhikari, Trinamool’s winning candidate in Tamluk said.