Bengal bypoll: Congress unlikely to field candidate against Mamata Banerjee in Bhowanipore seat

NEW DELHI: The Indian National Congress is unlikely to field a candidate against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the upcoming by-elections to Bhabanipur constituency on September 30.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Sunday officially announced that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is the party's candidate for Bhabanipur assembly constituency by-elections which will be held on September 30.

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Further, TMC leaders Jakir Hossain and Amirul Islam will be the party's candidates for Jangipur and Samserganj seats respectively.

Earlier on Saturday, the Election Commission has announced to hold by-elections to three assembly seats in West Bengal on September 30. These constituencies include Bhabanipur, the traditional seat of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, from where she will contest the by-elections. Besides Bhabanipur, by-polls will be held in Samserganj and Jangipur constituencies. The counting of votes will take place on October 3.

Notably, Mamata Banerjee was defeated by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in the Nandigram assembly constituency in the state Assembly polls held earlier this year.

Following this, the Bhabanipur assembly seat was vacated by the West Bengal Agriculture Minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay in May, making way for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to contest from the seat. The election on the seat is crucial for Banerjee to win if she has to remain the chief minister of the state.

The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC registered a landslide victory in polls winning 213 seats in the 294-member West Bengal assembly. Despite aggressive campaigning, the BJP lost the polls but emerged as the second-largest party with 77 seats.

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