AGARTALA, Feb 16 — The battle for urban constituency Agartala is certainly an elite one. Since the electors in the seat are by and large educated and politically conscious, both the Congress and CPM have fielded educated candidates in the constituency: Engineer-turned-lawyer-turned politician Sudip Roy Barman and advocate-turned-politician Sankar Das.
Last year CPM had fielded a firebrand woman candidate Krishna Rakshit against an equally firebrand Sudip Roy Barman. Apart from bringing a woman Marxist up the ladder, the CPM might have had in mind that the Agartala seat is dominated by electors from the fairer sex. In 6-Agartala seat while the total number of male voters is 23520, the number of female voters stand at 23671. But Krishna Rakshit was beaten by Sudip Roy Barman by a margin of 2,062 votes. This year, Krishna Rakshit faced the axe as the CPM put up AMC chairperson Sankar Das.
Strategically, the choice was the best for the ruling party. Sankar Das, former PP of the Agartala bench of Gauhati High Court is not only considered perfect gentleman and educated politician but is also fit for representing the urban constituency. Moreover, since he was a practising lawyer he had his own circle and area of influence. Added advantage was that the PDF politicians like Dhiraj Guha and Purushuttam Roy Barman along with a considerable number of city intelligentsia and cultural activists would put their weight behind him. But poll fight is essentially a different ball game where the ‘gentlemen’ do not always speak the last. Congress candidate Sudip Roy Barman is more politically mature and an equally educated politician. He has always been in the thick of squabble-ridden Congress politics and knows very well how to play the magic number and where to strike at the right moment. Moreover, as a Congress legislator Sudip Roy Barman was also highly successful, always raising important questions and issues relating not only to his constituency but also the entire State. He has already shown that he is a politician who cannot be ignored.
What is an extra plus point for Roy Barman is that while Sankar Das has definitely a strong base among a section of urban elite, he enjoys support of the slum dwellers in and around the capital. Roy Barman as an MLA remained close to them during the last five years and tried to help them out. Among the slum dwellers Sankar Das is not a very common name as yet. And the slum dwelling electors are certainly a decisive factor. It will no doubt be a tough fight, but Sudip Roy Barman seems a little ahead of Sankar Das in regard to poll campaign and poll prospects. But of the Youth Congress president, there is another factor which will certainly play a major role — the INPT supporters of the Agartala seat – to determine his fate. How much the Congress ally INPT led by Bijoy Hrangkhawl wants Samir Ranjan Barman and his son in the Assembly is anybody’s guess. And there area considerable number of INPT supporters and workers in Krishnanagar localities.