Chief minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee will address a rally at the Cooch Behar's Rasmela Maidan on December 9, a significant move amid the party's factional feuds in the district and people's concerns surrounding the SIR process.
On Sunday, the party’s Cooch Behar district president Abhijit De Bhowmik said they would meet district party leaders ahead of Mamata's visit.
“Our first meeting with block presidents will be held on Monday at the district Trinamool office. Another preparatory meeting will follow at Rabindra Bhavan on December 2, with MLAs, MPs and senior leaders from municipalities and rural bodies,” he said.
Currently, of the district's nine Assembly seats, Trinamool has three and the BJP six. Trinamool also won the Lok Sabha seat in 2024.
However, factionalism runs high.
A veteran Trinamool leader said that the current Trinamool district president De Bhowmik, minister Udayan Guha and district committee chairman Girindranath Barman were part of one camp, while former ministers Rabindranath Ghosh and Binay Krishna Barman and trade union leader Khokan Mian were in another. It was imperative that these camps resolved their differences, the leader added.
A political observer noted that Rajbangshi and Nasya Sheikh (Rajbangshi Muslims) communities played a decisive role in Cooch Behar elections.
“The ongoing SIR process has raised fears that many Rajbangshi Muslims and minority voters may be excluded. Trinamool sources say Mamata is likely to offer reassurance on this issue during her visit,” the observer said.