Mamata faction's candidate Sanchita Pradhan withdraws nomination; Cong candidate arrested after Banerjee announces support
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has announced that her party will support the Congress party's candidate in the Nandigram Assembly by-election.
Earlier, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, the candidate from the faction led by Mamata Banerjee, withdrew her nomination for the Nandigram Assembly by-election.
Sanchita Pradhan decided to withdraw her nomination after meeting the state's Chief Minister.
Subsequently, Mamata announced her support for Congress candidate Milan Pradhan in Nandigram. Two hours later, the Bengal Police arrested Milan in connection with an old case.
Suvendu Adhikari had won the Nandigram Assembly seat but subsequently vacated it.
Voting for this seat is scheduled for October 6. The deadline for filing nominations was September 16, while withdrawals are permitted until September 19.
Earlier, in an interim order issued on Thursday, the Election Commission had barred both factions (led by Mamata Banerjee and Arup Roy respectively) from using the name and election symbol of the All India Trinamool Congress in the by-elections for the Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies in West Bengal.
Subsequently, on Friday, the Election Commission assigned new names and symbols to both factions of the All India Trinamool Congress.
Now, Mamata Banerjee's faction will be named 'Mamata All India Trinamool Congress' and will use the 'Football Player' symbol.
Meanwhile, the faction led by Arup Roy has been named 'Democratic Trinamool Congress' and will use the 'Envelope' symbol.
Reacting to the developments Mamata Banerjee said, "We do not disrespect constitutional offices, but we feel that today is a dark day in our democratic history. What is happening in the country is extremely unfortunate, unconstitutional, illegal, and undemocratic. This is a completely partisan act of vendetta aimed at satisfying the arrogance of a political party."
Mamata Banerjee alleged, "They had already said, 'I will not let the name remain, nor will I let the symbol remain.' Who are these people? Today they are in power; tomorrow they might not be. They should understand their limits."
Regarding the loss of the party's name, Mamata Banerjee said, "I can still say 'All India Trinamool Congress Zindabad, Maa Mati Manush Zindabad, Jai Bangla Zindabad,' can't I?" She added, "We are supporting the Congress in Nandigram. We had already decided this, though the Congress was unaware of it; it was our decision."