Kolkata, March 17 Swapan Dasgupta, a leader of the BJP, has been nominated from Rashbehari, a wealthy neighborhood in South Kolkata, for the upcoming assembly elections. This nomination from Tarakeswar, a relatively quiet area in the Hooghly district of West Bengal, is seen as a homecoming for Dasgupta.
Dasgupta, a scholar from Nuffield College, Oxford, columnist, and ideologue of Hindutva nationalism, admits that his urban background makes him a better fit for Rashbehari, a constituency that includes his residence and that of his extended family.
In the 2021 assembly elections, Dasgupta, who previously served as a BJP Rajya Sabha member, unsuccessfully contested from the rural Tarakeswar seat, losing by a narrow margin of just over 7,000 votes to his nearest TMC rival.
"Rashbehari is a very important constituency for me. It's a seat where the boundaries are constantly changing, but my entire family lives here. It's a diverse area, with some of Kolkata's wealthiest people and some of the poorest," Dasgupta explained to
"The iconic Kali temple at Kalighat is located here. But what makes this seat crucial is that it borders Bhabanipur, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will be challenged by our leader Suvendu Adhikari this time," he said.
The Rashbehari seat, which has been a stronghold of the TMC since 1998, is considered a "very challenging proposition" by Dasgupta, where he expects strong resistance from his main opposition.
"However, things may have changed in terms of the BJP's prospects here," he claimed.
"We will put our best foot forward in both Bhabanipur and Rashbehari, and the combination of the two will be to our advantage," he said.
Dasgupta said that while South Kolkata may still be a TMC stronghold, the BJP is determined to break through.
"We are not making unrealistic claims, but I believe we will be able to capitalize on the widespread dissatisfaction of the people and reverse the stagnation and decline of Bengal caused by the past 15 years of TMC rule," he said.
Dasgupta said that his supporters are highly enthusiastic this time, and he hopes to meet the expectations of those who want to bring about a change in Bengal.
"This time, we are not just fighting to win seats. This time, we are fighting to establish our own government. There is a difference," the BJP leader proclaimed.
Dasgupta compared the BJP's position in the state during the 2021 polls with its current stature, stating that "the BJP has come of age" in the state.
"In 2021, despite putting our best foot forward and bringing in our top energies to the contest, there were certain shortcomings in our approach. The party was still evolving. I think we have now reached a critical point where we can take greater responsibilities and emerge as a true alternative to the TMC. We are now a government in waiting," he said.
If Dasgupta wins, he said he would bring "a crime-free and wholesome political environment" to Rashbehari, in line with the BJP's overall governance vision for the state.
"I would like to bring a sober, responsible, and honest politics to my constituency so that people don't have to worry about gangsters and criminals having a free run here and crude bombs getting lobbed at the slightest provocation," he said.
Dasgupta said his background in academia allows him to better understand the needs of the people and to reach out to them with a sense of humility, acknowledging that there may be different points of view than his own.
"You can run a club and exclude people from its domain. But the charm of electoral politics lies in its inclusive experience, where you bring everyone in to support you and be a part of a larger process. I can help build that as long as I am open-minded towards multiple problems and try to address them with a degree of sincerity," he said.
On the issue of contesting in a constituency that has been represented by veteran Trinamool Congress ministers like Shovandeb Chattopadhyay and, more recently, by civic boss Debasish Kumar, who wields considerable influence in the region, Dasgupta seemed unconcerned about his rivals.
"I am sure the TMC has a wealth of experience running its show from the Rashbehari seat. I am not worried about the candidate I am pitted against. We will merge our local campaign with that of our statewide political narrative and reach out to our voters," he said.
