The election has taken a dramatic turn with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fielding the victim’s mother, Ratna Debnath, as its candidate.
A stronghold of TMC
Panihati, long considered a stronghold of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), is witnessing an unusually charged contest ahead of the April 29 polls. Rather than local development issues, voters are focused on a lingering question: Who failed the RG Kar victim, and who can deliver justice now?
Three-way battle for political narrative
The contest has evolved into a triangular fight involving the BJP, TMC, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The BJP is attempting to channel public anger from the RG Kar movement into electoral support.
Meanwhile, the election in this constituency acts as a critical test of whether the ruling TMC’s long-standing organisational bastion can withstand rising public anger.
The CPI(M), which played a visible role in protests, is seeking to reclaim the movement’s legacy. For all parties, the stakes extend beyond a single seat — it is about ownership of one of Bengal’s most significant protest movements in recent years.
Victim’s mother steps into politics
Ratna Debnath’s entry into politics marks a significant turning point. Her candidacy reflects a shift from seeking justice through protests to pursuing it through electoral means. “If I can serve people, my daughter will also be happy. I want the lotus to bloom across West Bengal and the TMC to be uprooted,” Debnath was quoted as saying by PTI.
In a conversation with ANI, she said, “I am contesting the election for the safety of women… TMC candidate is no challenge for me here… People’s response is very good…”
The victim’s father stated that the family now believes political change is necessary to ensure justice and improve women’s safety in the state. “Only the BJP can ensure justice for my daughter and provide safety and security to the women of the state. We had said from the beginning that we would not allow politics over our child’s death. But what did the Left do except protest?” he added.
Crime that triggered statewide outrage
The August 2024 incident, in which a postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered inside the hospital premises, sparked massive protests across India. Doctors went on strike, demonstrations spread across cities, and the case became a national symbol of concerns over women’s safety and alleged mishandling of evidence.
In West Bengal, the protests evolved into a broader criticism of the government led by Mamata Banerjee.
Key candidates in the 2026 election
Against Debnath, the TMC has fielded Tirthankar Ghosh, son of veteran leader Nirmal Ghosh, who has held the seat multiple times since the 1990s. The CPI(M) has nominated Kalatan Dasgupta, a prominent face during the RG Kar protests.
Ratna Debnath — Bharatiya Janata Party
Tirthankar Ghosh — All India Trinamool Congress
Kalatan Dasgupta — Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Earlier elections results
Historically, Panihati has been a stronghold for veteran leaders, with CPI(M)’s Gopal Krishna Bhattacharya securing the seat seven times and the TMC’s Nirmal Ghosh winning it five times. Ghosh’s political journey began with a 1996 victory on a Congress ticket before he joined the Trinamool Congress upon its formation, winning for the party in 2001 and maintaining a streak of three consecutive victories since 2011.
His electoral margins have fluctuated over the years. He defeated the CPI(M) by over 31,000 votes in 2011, survived a close challenge from the Congress in 2016 with a slim 3,030-vote lead, and most recently re-established his dominance in 2021 by defeating a BJP-backed Sanmoy Bandopadhyay by more than 25,000 votes.
Following the Special Interactive Revision (SIR), the 2026 electoral roll for Panihati includes 1,97,141 voters, with a population predominantly characterised as Hindu and lower-middle-class to middle-class suburban.
