Kolkata, March 17 (NationPress) The Trinamool Congress unveiled its inaugural list of candidates on Tuesday, featuring 291 names, for the upcoming two-phase elections in April to the 294-member West Bengal Assembly. This sets the stage for a significant contest in the Bhabanipur constituency of south Kolkata, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will be vying for re-election.

According to the list shared by Banerjee, she will contest from Bhabanipur once again, facing off against the Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari.

On the previous day, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also announced its initial list of 144 candidates, nominating Adhikari from both his current constituency of Nandigram in East Midnapore district and Bhabanipur.

This marks the second time Banerjee will compete against Adhikari, who secured his position as a legislator from Nandigram for the second consecutive time in the 2021 elections, defeating Banerjee in that contest.

Subsequently, Banerjee reclaimed her position from Bhabanipur in a by-election, marking her third consecutive term as Chief Minister.

While Trinamool is contesting in 291 constituencies, they have left three assembly constituencies in the North Bengal hills—namely Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong—for their ally in the hills, the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), led by Anit Thapa, who also serves as the Chief Executive of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA).

In Nandigram, Trinamool has fielded former local BJP leader and close associate of Adhikari, Pabitra Kar, who joined Trinamool just hours before the candidate list was announced by the Chief Minister.

"This time, we are confident that our candidates will win in at least 226 Assembly constituencies. After this election, the BJP will lose its foothold in West Bengal," Banerjee stated.

In the 2021 Assembly elections, Trinamool secured 215 seats, while the BJP claimed 77 seats. The CPI-M-led Left Front and the All India Secular Front (AISF) had formed a seat-sharing agreement in 2021, with AISF winning one seat, while both the Left Front and Congress failed to secure any.

This year, the Congress and the Left Front are contesting the elections independently.

On Tuesday, the Chief Minister also directed a warning towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"I want to ask the Prime Minister, if you truly believe in the people of West Bengal, why are you undermining Bengal's sentiments? Remember, the people will respond in the elections!" she asserted.