Around 130 km from Kolkata is located the town of Krishnanagar, the headquarters of West Bengal’s Nadia district bordering Bangladesh. The historically rich Krishnanagar, which has one of the oldest municipalities in the state—established in 1864—is named after the 18th century king, Maharaja Krishnachandra Roy (1728-1782). He belonged to the era when the Battle of Plassey (1757) in Bengal ushered in East India Company rule in India, under Robert Clive. Krishnanagar may still have its share of historically important buildings and sites, but the town is decaying. With not many signs of development anywhere, it could easily be mistaken for just another small town in the hinterlands of Bengal, but for its famous erstwhile Lok Sabha member, the outspoken Mahua Moitra of the Trinamool Congress—erstwhile because she was expelled from Parliament under serious allegations of impropriety and is currently under the scanner of investigating agencies.
However, this has not stopped West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from fielding Mahua Moitra from Krishnanagar for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Moitra had a reasonably decent victory in the 2019 elections, winning with a margin of 63,218 votes over her BJP rival, Kalyan Chaubey. Four of the seven Assembly segments constituting the Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency, voted for her, while three went to the BJP. After that, in the 2021 Assembly elections, the TMC won all the seven Assembly seats. But that may not be good enough for Moitra to win back her former Lok Sabha seat in 2024. A strong wind against the TMC and Moitra is blowing in Krishnanagar and the Bharatiya Janata Party, hoping to cause an upset, has fielded Amrita Roy, the lady who would have been the queen of Krishnanagar if India still had royalty. Locally, Amrita Roy, who belongs to Krishnachandra Roy’s family, is called Rani-Ma. It seems Krishnanagar’s Rani-Ma is all set to give Moitra a run for her money.
The people of Krishnagaar complain that they are facing various problems related to transport, roads, drainage systems, waterlogging, manual railway crossings, drinking water, etc. Many voters told The Sunday Guardian that this time their voting pattern will change from being leader-centric to development-centric—meaning the vote is no longer for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, but will be a protest against the neglect they say they faced from Banerjee’s TMC and Mahua Moitra. People complain that Moitra has not executed a single development project in Krishnanagar. They add that that it’s high time there is a shift as, since 2009 this constituency has been represented by the TMC, but the people have not gained much. The voters say they want change and are leaning towards the BJP. It is to stop this erosion in TMC’s voter base that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee started her election campaign from Krishnanagar, with Mahua Moitra by her side, even though the seat will vote only in the fourth phase on 13 May.
Compared to Mahua Moitra, “Rani-Ma” Amrita Roy has a clean image, say the people of Krishnanagar. They also have an emotional connect with the erstwhile royal family, which is likely to work in favour of the BJP.
While talking to The Sunday Guardian, a shop owner near Krishnanagar rail station requested anonymity and said that the lack of proper drainage, proper roads, transport, etc., were a major problem, as well as waterlogging. He added that Mahua Moitra rarely visited the constituency after winning and had not executed a single development project, which she had promised during her election campaign in 2019. When asked about Mahua Moitra ignoring the recent ED summons, he added, “I don’t know much about the charges against her, but if ED is investigating her, she should cooperate with them.”
Debashis, a “toto” (e-rickshaw) driver, said that the people of Krishnanagar wanted development and nothing more. “In 2019, she promised that she would give Krishnanagar proper roads, but after winning, she did nothing.” He added that “Mahua Moitra cheated us, so this time we will vote against her.”
He further said that Krishnanagar’s main road, which connects the bus stand to the railway station and to the town has big potholes, and the ruling TMC never bothers to repair them. “Every rainy season, these potholes are the reason why accidents and traffic snarls take place. So this time I’ll vote for the BJP in the hope of development,” he added.
The Sunday Guardian also reached out to a family member of the erstwhile zamindars of Krishnanagar, Tanushree Singh Roy, who said that local TMC leaders, including sitting MP Mahua Moitra, wouldn’t listen to the people of the constituency. After half an hour of rain, the city gets submerged, and the dirty water enters people’s homes and shops. People suffer a lot, but after several complaints to councillors, MLAs, and even MP Mohua Moitra, not a single issue has been resolved. She added that this time they hope that “Rani-Ma” Amrita Roy will resolve all these issues for the people of Krishnanagar.
While speaking to The Sunday Guardian, Amrita Roy said that once she wins, her priority will be to resolve all such local issues like drainage, waterlogging, garbage, roads, manual railway crossings, etc. She added that TMC has not done anything and Mahua Moitra does not even bother to visit the seat. In 2024, The people of Krishnanagar will make the constituency TMC-free, she said.
However, TMC candidate Mahua Moitra has been saying that she is confident about her victory. “There is no doubt about my victory. It is now about how big the margin will be. I live here and have been among my people for the past five years, even before that as an MLA. So, there is a very strong connection,” Mahua Moitra has said during the campaign.
Political pundits who follow Bengal closely believe that this time the BJP indeed has an upper hand in Krishnanagar. As Krishnanagar is part of the border areas of the Nadia district, the constituency has a sizeable Matua community. These Hindu refugees from Bangladesh belong to the Namashudra community and settled here after escaping communal and ethnic persecution in East Pakistan (modern-day Bangladesh). Maharaja Krishnachandra Roy, though he supported Robert Clive against Bengal’s Nawab Siraj-ud-daulah, is remembered as a defender of Hindus against the exploitation by the Nawab and his people. This strikes a chord with the Matuas, who escaped communal violence on the other side of the border. With the CAA rules being framed, the BJP is expected to gain more support from the Matua community, which looks forward to finally getting the much-awaited formal citizenship of India. But at the same time, sections of the Matua community have also supported TMC, as they have benefited from the Mamata Banerjee government’s welfare schemes.
Krishnanagar has a majority of rural voters at 87%. Hindus comprise 55% of the seat, while Muslims 35%. The Scheduled Castes, primarily the Matuas, have a major say in which way the voting will go. At present, unless Mamata Banerjee is able to pull off a miracle, things are not looking good for Mahua Moitra in Krishnanagar.