Behrampur: Congress on Wednesday March 20 said it has confirmed candidates for the seven Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal.
West Bengal Congress President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury while addressing a press conference in Behrampur said, “We have decided candidates on seven seats and accordingly the candidates have been informed”.
According to Chowdhury, who is popular among partymen and followers as 'Robinhood' for his 'fighting spirit', Congress leader Nepal Mahato will be contesting the Lok Sabha election and Miltan Rashid will be contesting from Birbhum. Mortaza Hossain will contest from Jangipur while Chowdhury himself will be the Congress candidate from Baharampur.
Chowdhury said that the Congress has finalised candidates for Raiganj, Malda Uttar and Malda Dakshin, and the Kolkata Uttar seats. He said that the formal announcement of the candidates will be made by the All India Congress Committee in a day of two.
Significantly, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has not fielded candidates on these seven seats indicating a pre-poll understanding between the Congress and the Left.
Earlier, the Left first announced the list of candidates for 16 Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal.
Chowdhury said that Congress wanted to field a candidate from Alipurduar in north Bengal but Revolutionary Socialist Party, a constituent of the Left Front have announced candidates on the seat prompting the party to skip candidate for the seat. The state Congress chief however ruled out any alliance with the Indian Secular Front.
The ruling Trinamool Congress has announced candidates for all 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state while the BJP has announced candidates on 19 seats.