Hours after Mamata backs Congress in Nandigram, its candidate is arrested; her own nominee had quit after meeting CM
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Hours after Mamata backs Congress in Nandigram, its candidate is arrested; her own nominee had quit after meeting CM")
Photograph: (WION)
Congress claimed that Nandigram bypoll candidate Milan Pradhan was arrested hours after Mamata Banerjee announced her faction’s support for him and the Congress candidate.
Hours after Mamata Banerjee extended her support to Congress in Nandigram, the party's bypoll candidate, Milan Pradhan, was arrested on Friday in an old murder case. The same day, her own candidate, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, had withdrawn from the race after meeting Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, leaving her camp without a nominee. West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) president Subhankar Sarkar called the arrest proof that the BJP is pushing for "one-party rule" in the state.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Sarkar said Pradhan had raised concerns just before his arrest. "Milan Pradhan had said that an atmosphere of fear was being created," Sarkar said. "Fifteen minutes after that phone conversation, he was arrested. When asked why he was arrested, no reason was given."
Sarkar said Congress leader Tata Bhattacharya was also taken into custody. He said he had warned police in advance. "The day before yesterday, I told the IC not to obstruct our campaign," he said. "This same IC was in place in 2021 as well."
He said the party could get no answers about the arrests. "Every police station says 'we don't know.' No police officer can say, and even the Commission cannot say."
Sarkar accused the BJP of working toward a single-party system. "The BJP says 'One Nation, One Vote.' So will there be only one political party?" he asked. "We will go to the High Court."
He also targeted the Chief Minister over the bypoll. "This is the first election they have to face since the Assembly election, and they want to loot votes," Sarkar said. "When he was Leader of Opposition, he used to say Trinamool was looting votes. What is this?"
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Turning to the Election Commission's decision to split the Trinamool Congress, Sarkar questioned its role. "We want to ask the BJP and the Election Commission: what was the Commission's role in the matter of registration and the symbol?" he said. "Just as the Commission helped earlier in vote theft, it has now helped in symbol theft."
Sarkar announced a programme of agitation. "We will go to court tomorrow. From tomorrow,
Congress will hold protests in front of every police station. After that, we will give a call for 'Nandigram Chalo'," he said.
Background
Sanchita Pradhan Dey, fielded by the Mamata faction, met Adhikari at Nabanna on Friday and then withdrew her nomination. Banerjee then announced her faction would back Congress in Nandigram instead of fielding another candidate. Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said the party had not asked for her support.
An East Midnapore district police official said Pradhan is accused in an old murder case linked to the 2007 Nandigram violence and that a warrant had already been issued against him. The BJP's East Midnapore unit rejected the allegation of political motive and said the party had no connection with the arrest.
The Election Commission also split the Trinamool Congress into two factions on Friday, assigning each a new name and symbol. The Mamata faction will contest as the "Mamata All India Trinamool Congress," and the rebel faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee as the "Democratic Trinamool Congress."
Nandigram, one of the two seats Adhikari won in the 2026 Assembly elections, goes to a bypoll on October 6 along with Rejinagar. Counting is scheduled for Oct 9.
