Kol South candidate ends campaign at the doorstep of her Voter No. 1
Times of India | 30 May 2024
Kolkata: Kolkata South Trinamool candidate Mala Roy concluded her 75-day-long poll campaign on Wednesday at chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s doorstep in Kalighat.
On Tuesday, Banerjee rallied for Roy, as she walked from Park Circus to Ballygunge Phari, while Roy stood atop a vehicle, waving at the crowd.
“Mala is also a daughter of Kalighat and one of the most loved colleagues.I am confident you will shower your love on her the same way you have loved me all these years,” said Banerjee, who was a six-time MP from the constituency before she stepped down in 2011 to contest for an MLA’s post.
A politician for over three decades, Roy’s first win was in a civic in 1995 from her home ward—88—on a Congress ticket. In 2000, she won the election as a Trinamool candidate. The next two elections, she contested on a Congress ticket, retaining the ward on both occasions and being a fierce critic of Banerjee.
But she lost the general polls in 2014, which, too, she fought on a Congress ticket. Next, she returned to Trinamool and again, won the civic polls, following which, Roy became KMC’s chairperson, the first woman to hold the post. She replaced Subrata Bakshi in the parliamentary constituency in 2019, winning with a margin of 1.6 lakh votes. “I have been here for a long time and I am familiar with almost all lanes and alleys in this area. I don’t need to panic. I visited every slum, high-rise and para in my area, spending quality time at every place. I came to Mamata Banerjee’s home at the very last to seek her blessings so that there can be a record margin, surpassing even her record of 2 lakh-plus votes,” said Roy (67).
Campaigning since the evening of March 16, a week since Banerjee had renominated her from the seat, Roy has been attending meetings and community gatherings, apart from leading roadshows. “My constituency is a mini India, where people from all communities and races live. I have a solid team of 58 councillors from 59 wards and the journey has been smooth. My presence on the road for such a long time has made it difficult for my competitors,” said Roy.
Roy’s competitors—BJP’s Raigunj MP Debasree Chaudhuri and CPM’s Saira Shah Halim—are not far behind. “I have visited every corner of my constituency in these two months. I am sure my honest effort to reach out to the public and attempt to bring in a change won’t go unnoticed. We will bring back the Left in Kolkata South this election,” said Halim. Chaudhuri, who started her campaign late but picked up pace, said she, too, was confident of victory. “Our fight is against Trinamool’s corruption. I am reaching out with Narendra Modi’s message of development,” she said.