The Congress on Friday fielded former Union Minister Deepa Dasmunsi against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from Bhawanipore Assembly segment in the State.
The development assumes significance as the State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury had on March 8 said that Congress leader and Jadavpur University professor Omprakash Mishra would be contesting election from the same constituency.
However, Congress central leadership decided to field Ms. Dasmunsi, who had earlier represented Raiganj constituency in the State in the Lok Sabha.
Dasmunsi, wife of veteran Congress leader from Bengal Priyaranjan Dasmunshi, was a staunch critic of Ms. Banerjee. After the announcement, Prof. Mishra, who played an important role in forging the Congress-Left alliance in the State, withdrew from the electoral contest and wished success for Ms. Dasmunsi.
The other names in the list include Congress leader Amitava Chakraborty from Shyampur Assembly seat in Howrah, Abdul Mannan contesting from Champdani in Hooghly district, and Sankar Singh from Ranahghat Uttar Paschim in Nadia district.
The Congress had earlier announced candidates for 43 seats, and with 42 names announced on Friday, the total number of candidates in the poll fray increased to 85.
The party is likely to announce candidate for 10 more seats, which includes Chowringhee Assembly seat.
