Bengal polls: RG Kar victim's mother files nomination as BJP candidate from Panihati
Kolkata (PTI): Ratna Debnath, mother of the raped-murdered RG Kar hospital doctor and the BJP candidate from Panihati, filed her nomination papers on Thursday.
She was accompanied by senior BJP leader and former Union minister Smriti Irani and district party leaders.
Speaking to reporters after filing her nomination, she said her sole aim is to oust the TMC regime in West Bengal, which, she alleged, would ensure women's safety in the state and prevent a recurrence of incidents like the RG Kar case.
Nearly a year and a half after the brutal killing of her 26-year-old daughter inside a locked seminar room of the state-run hospital in August 2024, Debnath agreed to contest the polls on a BJP ticket from her hometown Panihati after being approached by the party "to bring to light the truth behind the crime".
She is pitted against TMC's Tirthankar Ghosh and CPI(M)'s Kalatan Dasgupta.
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Karnataka bypolls: Over 60 per cent voter turnout in Bagalkot, Davanagere South till 5 pm
Bengaluru (PTI): Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 pm in both Assembly constituencies in Karnataka, where bypolls were held on Thursday.
While the turnout in Bagalkot was 65.68 per cent, it was 63.04 per cent in Davanagere South.
While the ruling Congress faces the challenge of retaining both seats, the BJP aims to wrest them and deliver a setback to its rival, which is currently witnessing an "internal power struggle" over leadership.
The bypolls were necessitated due to the demise of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkot) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davanagere South).
A total of over 2.59 lakh eligible voters are expected to cast their votes at around 319 polling stations in Bagalkot, where nine candidates are in the fray.
In Davanagere South, over 2.31 lakh eligible voters are expected to vote across 284 polling stations, with 25 candidates contesting.
The BJP has fielded former MLA and 2023 defeated candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath from Bagalkot, and a fresh face, Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, from Davanagere South.
The Congress has given tickets to family members of the late legislators in both constituencies. Bagalkot candidate Umesh Meti is the son of H Y Meti, while Samarth Mallikarjun from Davanagere South is the grandson of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.
