Trinamool’s choice of Pathan stumps Congress, Left parties
The Trinamool Congress has stunned everyone by placing its bets on former Indian cricketer Yusuf Pathan to defeat West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency. Mr. Chowdhury has won the seat five times in a row since 1999.
The Trinamool has never won the seat, which in the past seven decades has been dominated by either the Congress or the Revolutionary Socialist Party. The only solace it has is that Mr. Chowdhury’s vote share has dipped over 11% since the 2009 Lok Sabha election. Trinamool candidates came second in the 2014 and 2019 elections.
With Mr. Pathan in the race, the Trinamool believes it has a double advantage. First, the cricketer’s star quality will bring in the crowds and second, as an “outsider”, he is better placed to rally the mul
tiple groups of “Chowdhury baiters”.
“You always need a disruptor to dislodge an entrenched candidate. And as far we see it, Mr. Pathan is just that,” a senior Trinamool leader said.
“Till now, all Mr. Chowdhury’s challengers have been from the Baharampur backyard. And there are several groups of baiters who want to contest against Mr. Chowdhury. As an outsider, it will be easier for Mr. Pathan to rally all these different groups together as opposed to a leader of one particular group,” the Trinamool leader said. The constituency has 52% Muslim voters and the party believes Mr. Pathan will help in dividing them. Mr. Pathan’s only connection to West Bengal is that he has played for the IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders for seven years.
Both the Congress and the Left claim that by fielding him, the Trinamool has already conceded defeat. “Baharampur is largely a rural population. How will Mr. Pathan speak to the voters when he does not speak Bangla? Secondly, it runs against the Trinamool’s own narrative of framing the BJP as outsiders,” a senior Left leader said.
A senior Congress leader said, “We thought that since the Trinamool is going hammer and tongs against Mr. Chowdhury, they would put up a strong candidate against him. This is as good as giving him a walkover.”