Mamta Banerjee will start her campaign for Bhawanipur by-election from tomorrow

“Mamata Banerjee will start her campaign as a TMC candidate for the Bhabnipur seat bypolls to be held from September 8,” sources said.

The Election Commission has announced by-elections to be held on September 30 in three assembly seats of West Bengal – Bhabnipur, Jangipur and Samserganj. Bhawanipur is the traditional seat of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The TMC on Sunday officially announced that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is the party’s candidate for the Bhawanipore assembly.

West Bengal Agriculture Minister Shobhandev Chattopadhyay had vacated the Bhabnipur assembly seat in May, making way for Mamata Banerjee to contest from the seat. Winning this seat is crucial if Banerjee is to continue as the chief minister of the state.

In the assembly elections held earlier this year, Mamata Banerjee was defeated by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in Nandigram assembly constituency. She will now contest from Bhabnipur seat where polling is to be held on September 30.

Besides this, TMC leaders Zakir Hussain and Amirul Islam will be the party’s candidates for Jangipur and Samserganj seats respectively.

Earlier on Monday, sources said that the Indian National Congress is unlikely to field a candidate against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the upcoming bypolls.

Counting of votes will take place on October 3.

Subsequently, in May, West Bengal Agriculture Minister Shobhandev Chattopadhyay vacated the Bhabnipur assembly seat, making way for the Chief Minister of West Bengal to contest from the seat.

Winning this seat is crucial if Banerjee is to continue as the chief minister of the state.

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