Kolkata. Campaigning for the Ballygunge assembly seat by-polls is almost at its last lap and the biggest challenge before singer-turned-politician Babul Supriyo, who was a two-time Lok Sabha MP from Asansol and also held the post of a Union minister in the pic.twitter.com/MTUrPcR1VY
— ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2021
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi government. Soon after the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, Supriyo switched from BJP to Trinamool Congress and also resigned as Asansol Lok Sabha MP. In return, the Trinamool gifted him candidature for the Ballygunge assembly bypoll, which was held in November last year following the sudden demise of former party MLA and state panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee.
During the campaign programs for the Ballygunge bypoll, be it BJP candidate, Kiya Ghosh or CPI(M) candidate, Saira Shah Halim, both are exposing Supriyo’s changing ideologies.
The BJP has adopted a unique strategy to expose his old association with Supriyo. In almost all his campaign rallies, BJP candidate Kiya Ghosh, a former journalist, has repeatedly played the song ‘Ei Trinamool Aar Noi (This Trinamool No More)’ composed and sung by Supriyo ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. This is an attempt to remind the voters of Ballygunge of Supriyo’s close association with the BJP for 10 years.
Speaking to -AnyTV News, Kiya Ghosh said that the song has been composed and sung by Supriyo, but it is now the property of the BJP. He said, “There are many instances of changing political camp. But the way Supriyo moved to Trinamool Congress after being removed from the post of Union minister, it is not really acceptable to the voters. But it is not true that I am only in elections. I am campaigning. I am speaking on many local issues like waterlogging and lack of drinking water in the slum areas of Ballygunge constituency.”
The CPI(M) is also referring to Supriyo’s old statements and actions as a former BJP Lok Sabha member and Union minister in campaign meetings.
However, Supriyo has his own arguments. According to him, “This is not the first case when a person has changed his political camp. But I had honest grounds that I resigned as a Lok Sabha member of the BJP soon after joining the Trinamool Congress. Opponents are exposing my anti-Trinamool remarks or my support for CAA and NRC. It was my political compulsion, then I was a BJP MP. Let opponents say whatever they have to say. But all I know is that I Joined Trinamool to be a part of a major development program undertaken by the West Bengal government under the dynamic leadership of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.”
To recall, Babul Supriyo recently became a covert target on the same issue of famous Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah whose niece Saira Shah Haleem is the CPI-M candidate this time from Ballygunge.
Naseeruddin Shah had recently released a video message seeking public support for his niece, in which he directly referred to Supriyo’s transfer from the BJP to the Trinamool.
Naseeruddin Shah had said in the video message, “I am not a member of any political party. I am personally seeking votes for my niece. Would you choose someone who changes his political ideology frequently or any other person? To such a person, who stands with the people? Hence, I am seeking support for Saira Shah Haleem in the Ballygunge by-election.”
Hours after Shah’s video message became public, Supriyo replied via a Twitter message, where he said that perhaps Shah released the message due to pressure from the CPI(M).
Supriyo tweeted, “We all love and respect Naseeruddin Shah. A great legend who is now playing the role of an Uncle in real life. Wow! He has got both Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan but sadly no. He looks very sad in the video. Looks like CPI-M, West Bengal forced him to record it. But the video is too cute.”
—AnyTV News
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