Ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the BJP has fielded Ratna Debnath, mother of the RG Kar Medical College rape-murder victim, from Panihati. Party leaders defended the move, calling it a step toward justice and women’s empowerment
BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh praises party decision of feilding RG Kar victim's mother as a candidate (File pic)
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, on Thursday, ahead of the Bengal elections 2026, defended their decision to field the mother of the junior doctor of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, who was raped and murdered within the hospital premises in August 2024. The BJP has given the ticket to the victim’s mother from the Panihati Assembly constituency in North 24 Parganas district.
The victim's mother, Ratna Debnath, featured in the party's third list of 19 candidates, announced on Wednesday, for the forthcoming two-phase Assembly elections in the state next month, as reported by IANS.
BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh, while talking to the media on Thursday, said, "The BJP has ensured that the victim’s voice is heard in Bengal’s largest panchayat, enabling her to receive justice. The BJP has shown the victim's mother the way to the Bengal Assembly," as cited by IANS.
BJP accuses TMC of sheltering culprits
BJP General Secretary further accused the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government of sheltering the culprits in the case.
Chugh further added, "The cruel Trinamool government of Mamata Banerjee in Bengal had committed injustice against the victim of the R.G. Kar Medical College (case). Mamata Banerjee’s government made every possible effort to protect the culprits and employed every tactic to suppress the case."
Bihar BJP President Sanjay Saraogi praises the decision
Sanjay Saraogi, while praising the BJP's decision, said, "She should definitely be given (the ticket). This is a matter of women's respect and empowerment. She (the victim) had to go through such brutal things; if the BJP had given her (the victim's mother) a ticket (to contest the Assembly polls), this would be a mark of respect to women's rights. She will win in Bengal and raise her voice in the Assembly. The BJP has done a great job."
Notably, Ratna Debnath is also a voter from the Panihati constituency
It may be recalled that on March 23, Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, had informed media persons that the parents of the R.G. Kar victim had taken primary membership of the BJP.
However, Adhikari had then said that whether any of them would be fielded as a candidate from Panihati would be decided by the party’s central leadership. On Wednesday, the party announced the name of the victim’s mother as its candidate from the constituency.
(With inputs from IANS)
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