Shortly after Trinamool Congress fielded former Indian cricketer Yusuf Pathan from West Bengal’s Baharampur as it’s candidate for Lok Sabha elections, the BJP on Sunday slammed Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek over their “outsiders” charge against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Reacting to the TMC’s list of candidates, Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar pointed out that Kirti Azad and Yusuf Pathan, both former cricketers, aren’t from the state either.
“Just half an hour before TMC’s list was announced, Abhishek Banerjee was making statements like the BJP is anti-Bengal. Now, when the candidates are announced, it’s clear that TMC is bringing people from outside. I don’t know if Kirti Azad and Yusuf Pathan are Bengali, Yusuf Pathan is from Gujarat, and so is PM Modi, but for them, PM Modi is an outsider,” he said.
Majumdar said that the Bengal CM has given tickets to actresses as she is scared other leaders could threaten his nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
“They (TMC) don’t have any candidates and hence they’ve given the ticket to a sitting minister. INDIA alliance is nothing but a ship without a captain. It’s CM Mamata Banerjee’s strategy and also she is in fear that no other leader gets much importance that one can become a bigger leader than Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, hence they give tickets to actresses so that her nephew continues to be a politician,” he added.
TMC has fielded actor turned politician Sayoni Ghosh from Jadavpur.
The other candidates include Shahnawaz Ali Rehaan from Malda Dakshin, Sougata Roy from Dum Dum, Hazi Nurul Islam from Basirhat, actor turned politician Sayoni Ghosh from Jadavpur, Mala Roy from Kolkata Dakshin, Sudip Bandopadhyay from Kolkata North and Prasoon Bandopadhyay from Howrah.
Kalyan Bandopadhyay will be contesting the Lok Sabha elections on TMC ticket from Sreerampore. Actor turned politician Nusrat Jahan has been dropped from the Basirhat constituency, under which Sandeshkhali falls.