The upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Hooghly, West Bengal, are set to witness a high-profile contest between two prominent Bengali film stars. BJP’s Locket Chatterjee will face off against Trinamool Congress’s (TMC) Rachana Banerjee in the fifth phase of the elections on Monday.
Rachana Banerjee, popularly known for hosting the hit television show “Didi No. 1,” was introduced as the TMC candidate in a March rally, branded as the “other Didi.” Her inclusion is part of TMC’s strategy to leverage star power in its campaigns, a tactic that has seen actors like Mimi Chakraborty and Nusrat Jahan fielded in previous elections. Deepak Adhikari, known as Dev, and Shatrughan Sinha are also contesting from Ghatal and Asansol, respectively, with cricketer-turned-politician Yusuf Pathan running against Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in Berhampore.
Hooghly holds symbolic significance for TMC due to Mamata Banerjee’s historic Singur movement, which led to the departure of Tata’s Nano plant from West Bengal to Gujarat and contributed to ending the Left’s 34-year rule in the state. The TMC aims to capitalize on BJP’s weaker organizational presence in Hooghly, bolstered by the fact that all seven assembly constituencies in the district are held by TMC legislators. Despite their political rivalry, Chatterjee and Banerjee have maintained a cordial relationship, having shared screen space in several Bengali films.
Locket Chatterjee, known for her vocal criticism of the Mamata Banerjee government, emphasized that her campaign is against corruption rather than her opponent. “This fight is not against the candidate; it is against corruption. This is not a fight against Didi Number One; this is against corruption Number One,” she stated, highlighting issues such as the Sandeshkhali incident and employment. Chatterjee has also promised industrial development in Hooghly, citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to bringing industries for youth employment. Her campaign has faced challenges, including an incident in April where TMC supporters allegedly attacked her vehicle during a Kali puja in Bansberia.
Prime Minister Modi has criticized the TMC, accusing it of fostering lawlessness and societal division. “TMC is destroying society, law and order, and unity in India. Amid BJP’s efforts for development, TMC is busy with its ‘own work’…TMC is dividing society, breaking the law, and breaking unity,” he said during a public meeting in Hooghly. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Locket Chatterjee made a significant breakthrough for the BJP by defeating TMC’s Ratna De with a margin of 73,362 votes. This time, the CPM, allied with Congress under the INDIA bloc, has fielded Manadip Ghosh from Hooghly.
West Bengal, which sends 42 MPs to Parliament, is voting in all seven phases of the election. The counting of votes is scheduled for June 4. In the previous elections, TMC secured 34 seats in 2014 but saw a reduced tally of 22 in 2019, while the BJP increased its share from 2 seats in 2014 to 18 in 2019. The Congress and CPI(M) had significantly reduced tallies in the last elections.