Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan held a roadshow for his brother, Yusuf Pathan, who is contesting for the Trinamool Congress in Baharampur. The roadshow, conducted on Thursday, saw Yusuf Pathan and Irfan Pathan waving at people from an open-roofed vehicle as they drove down the streets of Baharampur.
“My brother will return double the amount of love he is receiving today...I have come here to support my brother. He should win and work for the people. When my brother wins, I will also come here to see his work. He meets the people here and tries to understand the problems people are facing,” Irfan Pathan said during campaigning.
Baharampur is witnessing a fierce contest among the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the TMC, with voting scheduled for May 13. Yusuf Pathan will face Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the president of the West Bengal unit of Congress, and BJP candidate Dr. Nirmal Kumar Saha.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the current sitting Member of Parliament from Baharampur, has been a prominent leader in the region, securing victory for the Congress party in three consecutive terms from 2009 to 2019. Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress, in power in Bengal since 2011, is aiming to capture the seat, which has eluded the party thus far.
Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency is set for polling on May 13 as part of Phase 4 of the elections in West Bengal, which sends 42 MPs to Parliament. The state is voting across seven phases, with polling already completed in six seats in the initial phases. Remaining parliamentary seats will see polling on May 13, May 20, May 25, and June 1, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the TMC secured 34 seats in the state, while the BJP won 2 seats. The CPI (M) and Congress secured 2 and 4 seats, respectively. However, the BJP made significant gains in the 2019 polls, winning 18 seats against the TMC's 22. The Congress's tally dropped to 2 seats, while the Left failed to secure any seats.
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are being conducted in seven phases, running from April 19 to June 1, with significant attention on key battlegrounds like Baharampur in West Bengal.