BJP to Field Victim's Mother as Candidate in West Bengal Elections
In a significant political development ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the mother of the junior doctor who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College in 2024 has reportedly expressed her interest in contesting as a BJP candidate. As per the latest statement made by the parents of the victim of the infamous RG Kar case, the mother earlier today called the BJP office to express her interest in being fielded as a candidate, according to an Indian Express report. The victim’s parents decided to contest the polls reportedly following after pursuation from the BJP. The BJP is expected to announce her name in its second list of candidates. The victim’s mother stated that her decision was driven by the need for justice and concerns over women’s safety in the state. She noted that while several parties made offers, she believes the BJP is the only platform that can effectively challenge the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC). “I had only called and said I want to be a candidate. The fight for justice has become tough. All parties have made offers, but to get justice, we need to stay with the BJP. We are still unhappy with CBI as they are not working. I don’t want what happened to my daughter to ever happen to another woman,” the victim’s mother told reporters earlier today. Despite her political alignment, she noted that the family remains unhappy with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for the perceived slow pace of the probe. “We want justice for our daughter, so we are with the BJP. We had said that we won’t allow anyone to do politics with our child’s death. What did the Left do other than just protest? It has instead done things so that we don’t get justice,” she said acussing left leaning Indian parties of complicating her path to ‘justice’. “The way the Left ran the state in the past and now they are helping the TMC to stay in power. We (she and her husband) don’t want to know who the candidate is who is to fight against us.” she added. The Panihati seat, from which she is expected to contest the elections, is set for a high-profile triangular contest. Trying to close in on the Panihati, TMC has fielded Tirthankar Ghosh, son of five-time MLA Nirmal Ghosh, who previously registered an electoral victory with a margin of 25,000 votes in the region. Meanwhile, the CPI(M) has nominated Koltan Dasgupta, a well-known face from the RG Kar protest movement. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has drastically reduced the number of phases for the 2026 elections to ensure a more streamlined process. April 23, 2026 (152 seats) April 29, 2026 (142 seats) — Panihati votes in this phase. May 4, 2026 294 A major talking point this election is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls. The ECI undertook this exercise to remove ineligible or “bogus” voters. While the BJP maintains the cleanup is necessary to ensure a proper conduct of elections to account for changes made to the electoral landscape of the state, the TMC has alleged that genuine voters have been ‘deleted’ from the list. As per a report by The Wire, nearly six lakh names remain ‘under adjudication’ in North 24 Pargana, which could play a decisive role in close contests like Panihati. The entry of the victim’s mother into the political fray comes nearly two years after the horrific incident that shook the nation: August 9, 2024: A 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College. Following massive public outcry, the Calcutta High Court transferred the case from the state police to the CBI. On January 20, 2025, the trial court sentenced the primary accused, civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy, to life imprisonment. Both the CBI and the victim’s family moved the High Court seeking the death penalty for Roy. The family maintains that Roy did not act alone and continues to demand a probe into a larger conspiracy and institutional cover-up.
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