West Bengal Lok Sabha Elections 2024: From Mahua Moitra to Adhir Ranjan, here's list of top players

The 2024 Lok Sabha elections have turned West Bengal into a pivotal battleground, witnessing a significant political showdown between Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress and its primary adversary, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The States's 42 Lok Sabha constituencies underwent a seven-phase polling process from April 19 to June 1, marked by incidents of violence that tainted the electoral proceedings.

Among the notable contenders are TMC's Abhishek Banerjee, sitting MPs Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Sougata Roy, and Mala Roy, BJP's former Union minister Debasree Chaudhuri, and senior CPI (M) leader Sujan Chakraborty.

With a target of securing 400 seats nationwide, the BJP launched an assertive campaign in Bengal, highlighting issues such as corruption and the recent incident in Sandeshkhali. In the 2019 elections, the BJP displayed an impressive performance in West Bengal, winning 18 seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has now proclaimed that Bengal will emerge as the top-performing state for his party in this election cycle.

Following a lacklustre performance in the state elections, securing only 77 out of 294 seats, the BJP is pinning its hopes on unconventional candidates like former Calcutta High Court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay and Sandeshkhali incident survivor Rekha Patra to bolster its support base.

Let's rewind who are the top competitors:

Mahua Moitra (TMC)- Krishnanagar

In this election, Trinamool nominated Mahua Moitra once again as its candidate, while Amrita Roy stood for the BJP. Moitra faced disqualification as an MP in 2023 during the 17th Lok Sabha term. A Lok Sabha disciplinary committee ruled to disqualify her from the lower house following allegations by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, who accused Moitra of disclosing confidential information of the Indian Parliament to a third party. Moitra vehemently denied the allegations, labelling her disqualification as orchestrated due to her outspoken criticism of Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani.

Shantanu Thakur (BJP)- Bongaon

Once more, the BJP has put forward Shantanu Thakur as its candidate to challenge AITC's Biswajit Das, who is vying to reclaim the party stronghold. In the 2019 general election, Shantanu Thakur of the BJP secured victory over AITMC's Mamata Thakur by a margin of 1.1 lakh votes, effectively breaking the Trinamool Congress' longstanding dominance in the constituency.

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury (Congress)- Baharampur  

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is contesting from the Baharampur constituency, marking what is likely the most pivotal and defining election in his career. As Bengal’s senior-most Congress leader and a staunch loyalist to the Gandhi family, Chowdhury has served as a five-term MP from this seat since 1999.

Abhijit Gangopadhyay (BJP)- Tamluk

Former judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay emerged as the BJP's Lok Sabha candidate from the Tamluk constituency in Bengal's East Midnapore district. Gangopadhyay resigned from his position as a judge of the Calcutta High Court in March, just five months before his retirement, to pursue his political aspirations. Notably, he fearlessly pursued corruption allegations against the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC), despite facing death threats.

Locket Chatterjee (BJP)- Hooghly

Seeking re-election from West Bengal's Hooghly Lok Sabha constituency, BJP MP Locket Chatterjee is renowned as a dynamic leader within the Saffron party. Initially a member of the TMC, she transitioned to the BJP in 2015 due to ideological disparities. Chatterjee has pledged to facilitate the return of the Tatas to Singur should her party assume power in the state.

Shatrughan Prasad Sinha (AITC)- Asansol

Shatrughan Prasad Sinha is running as a candidate for the AITC in the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 from Asansol, West Bengal. The constituency witnesses a competitive race between TMC's Shatrughan Sinha and BJP's SS Ahluwalia. Initially, the BJP had nominated Bhojpuri Singer Pawan Singh against Sinha, but Singh later withdrew his candidacy. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the TMC secured the majority of seats in the state with 34, while the BJP obtained just 2 seats. The CPI(M) and the Congress won 2 and 4 seats, respectively.

Yusuf Pathan (TMC)- Berhampore

Yusuf Pathan, the cricketer-turned-politician and Trinamool Congress candidate from Berhampore, is making his electoral debut. He is up against the incumbent MP from Congress, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. While the TMC anticipates a decisive win for Pathan, political analysts doubt his ability to overcome Adhir Ranjan's formidable presence in the constituency.

 Nisith Pramanik (BJP)- Cooch Behar 

Union minister Nisith Pramanik, who was renominated by the BJP in Cooch Behar seat for the Lok Sabha elections, has 14 criminal cases pending against him, according to an affidavit filed by him along with his nomination paper. He joined the BJP in 2019 after he was expelled from the Trinamool Congress in 2018 over allegedly putting up several independents in that year's panchayat polls in the state against party-nominated contestants in Cooch Behar district.

Satabdi Roy (TMC)- Birbhum

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Satabdi Roy has entered the electoral fray from the Birbhum constituency, contesting against BJP's Debtanu Bhattacharya.

Swapan Majumdar (BJP)- Barasat 

The Saffron party has pitted Swapan Majumdar from the Barasat constituency, setting the stage for a formidable challenge against the TMC. However, Majumdar faces an uphill battle in wresting the seat from the incumbent party. Earlier in March, BJP leaders addressed the Election Commission, levelling a series of grave accusations against their own candidate. These allegations ranged from Majumdar's conviction in a narcotics case in 2017 to purported misrepresentations of his assets in his affidavit.

Also Read: West Bengal Lok Sabha Election 2024 Exit Poll: Mamata heads for defeat as BJP gains massively

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