Bengal elections | RG Kar victim’s mother to contest? 'Got BJP offer long back'
Bereaved woman targets state's 'Home Minister' Mamata Banerjee, may contest from Panihati, a ruling party bastion
In a significant development ahead of the two-phase Assembly elections in West Bengal in April, the state’s Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received a boost as the mother of the young doctor student, who was raped and murdered while on duty in Kolkata’s renowned RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August 2024, has decided to contest the polls.
On Thursday (March 19), she said that she is keen to fight the elections on the ticket of the saffron party, which is looking to unseat the Trinamool Congress (TMC) from power. She asserted that she aims to take the political route to topple the current ruling party.
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Speaking to reporters, the deceased doctor's mother said she is likely to be fielded from Panihati constituency in North 24 Parganas, and her name may feature in the second list of candidates that the BJP is expected to release soon. The party released its first list of 144 candidates on Monday (March 16).
Panihati is a TMC bastion as the ruling party has won it four out of the last five elections. However, the ruling party has not given the seat's ticket to Nirmal Ghosh, who won each of those four times, and fielded Tirthankar Ghosh, his son, instead.
Victim's mother takes a dig at Mamata
“I had received an offer from the BJP long back, but I was not mentally ready then. Yesterday, I decided to accept it and contest because I want to end the rule of the home minister,” she said, referring to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who also holds the home portfolio.
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She alleged that the state government had tried to obstruct the investigation and justice process in her daughter's case.
“I am entering politics to ensure justice for my daughter and to remove this government from power,” she added.
BJP leader Arjun Singh, a former TMC leader, had recently met the parents of the deceased doctor.
The victim's parents alleged that the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was tacitly helping the TMC government to retain power.
The woman also said that she herself dialled a BJP leader to inform her interest in contesting the elections, Bengali daily Anandabazaar Patrika reported. However, the family did not reveal the leader's name. Sources in the BJP said the party soon reassessed its plan on picking the face from Panihati after getting the call, the daily added.
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The rape-murder of the 31-year-old doctor inside the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital had triggered nationwide outrage and prolonged protests by doctors and civil society groups across the state.
The case became a major political flashpoint in the state, with the BJP accusing the Mamata government of shielding those responsible, while the TMC rejected the allegations and said the law would take its course.
CPI(M) fields another mother of an ill-fated girl
In another instance where the mother of a slain daughter decided to contest the upcoming elections, Sabina Yasmin, who lost her nine-year-old daughter to a crude bomb blast during a victory rally held by the TMC after a bypoll in Kaliganj Assembly seat in Nadia district of Bengal in June last year, has been fielded by the CPI(M) from the same constituency.
(With agency inputs)