BJP's Bengal co-incharge, Amit Malviya, has called Trinamool Congress (TMC)’s victory in all six West Bengal Assembly by-election seats a "blood tainted win" for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
He urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take extra measures to ensure fair elections in the state.
Malviya posted on his X handle, stating, “West Bengal was the only state to witness political violence and a death during the recent by-elections. Unless the ECI goes the extra mile to ensure a fair and free election, and to control the local administration, there is little value in holding elections. This is a blood-tainted win for Mamata Banerjee.”
The statement followed an incident in Naihati, where a man was shot and killed just two hours after the polls began. Reports suggest that the incident was a result of internal conflicts within the TMC, as the victim was protesting against local intimidation.
In the six contested seats, TMC secured a significant win, including Madarihat in north Bengal—a seat with a large tea garden laborer population that the BJP had won in the 2021 elections.
This marked the first time since 1998, when the BJP was founded, that the seat shifted to TMC.
By-elections took place in six assembly constituencies: Sitai, Madarihat, Naihati, Medinipur, Tamdangra, and Haroa, following the resignation of sitting MLAs who won in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
TMC's victory was notable in Sitai, a Dalit-majority area, where candidate Sangita Roy won with a record margin of 1,30,636 votes, defeating BJP’s Dipak Kumar Roy.
In Madarihat (a Scheduled Tribe constituency), TMC's Jayprakash Toppo won by 28,168 votes, defeating BJP’s Rahul Lohar and taking the seat from BJP control. The ruling TMC managed to retain all five other seats.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her gratitude, saying, “I want to thank and congratulate the people—the ‘Maa, Mati, and Manush’—from the bottom of my heart. Your support motivates us to keep working for the people. We are common citizens, not landlords, but caretakers of the people,” she shared on her X handle.
Also Read: TMC consolidates position in WB bypoll; Mamata thanks voters
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