The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday fielded former Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha members Sushmita Dev, Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, and Prakash Chik Baraik for the July 24 by-elections in West Bengal, moving quickly after inducting them into the party at its Salt Lake office in Kolkata.

The announcement came the same day the three leaders formally joined the BJP in the presence of state president Samik Bhattacharya and other senior leaders.

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A brisk reshuffle before the contest

The three had resigned from the Upper House and quit the TMC last month, triggering vacancies that led the Election Commission to announce the bypolls earlier this week.

The BJP said all three former leaders would contest the seats they vacated.

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Bhattacharya initially stopped short of confirming the nominations.

“Let the discussions continue,” he said before later defending the inductions as an exceptional case.

He said, “This is not a deviation but an exception. Exceptions prove the law,” while also adding that the BJP’s door remained closed to TMC leaders it viewed as tainted.

Fresh recruits, familiar accusations

The newly inducted leaders used the occasion to criticize the TMC.

Roy said Bengal had declined under Left Front and TMC rule and claimed the party was “finished,” while Dev emphasized she had realized the extent of corruption only after joining the TMC.

Dev also said the decision to join in Kolkata was taken by the party leadership, despite her being based in Assam.

The political board welcomes another gambit

The development adds another layer to the political churn in West Bengal, where the BJP currently holds three of the state’s 13 Rajya Sabha seats.

The remaining seats are with TMC members, many of whom are loyal to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The latest round of defections has sharpened the confrontation between the two parties ahead of the bypolls.

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FAQs

Q1: Why did the BJP field former TMC leaders in the West Bengal Rajya Sabha bypolls?

The BJP nominated Sushmita Dev, Sukhendu Sekhar Ray and Prakash Chik Baraik after they resigned from the Rajya Sabha, quit the Trinamool Congress, and joined the BJP.

Q2: When will the West Bengal Rajya Sabha bypolls be held?

The Rajya Sabha bypolls for the vacant West Bengal seats are scheduled to be held on July 24.