- 13 hours ago
An India Today ground report from South 24 Parganas highlights the political contest between the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
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00:28Satsang with Mooji
00:36South 24 Parganas, Mahmata Banerjee's fortress and BJP's most audacious and ambitious project
00:45of 2026. It's a vast region, the one that spreads from mangroves of Sundarbans to the
00:53outskirts of Kolkata. And in a close contest, this is where Bengal's fate could be decided.
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01:31foreign
01:38foreign
01:40No, I don't think it's going to be in the market.
01:44What happens in the election?
01:47In the election, there is TMC election.
01:52What happens in the election?
01:55In the election, there is a lot of TMC here.
01:58The TMC said, we have been working on a road as well.
02:02What is currently on this plan?
02:03The road is running?
02:08The roads are running?
02:09The streets are running?
02:09The people that are running, too, are running?
02:12They are running?
02:13They are running?
02:14Therefore, the people in my country were running so two-edged and almost none.
02:24Why in the election, the government is running so fast?
02:27Thectic is running from China.
02:56Transcription by CastingWords
02:58No, no.
03:00He didn't get the shot.
03:01He was here.
03:03He didn't get the shot.
03:04How many were you?
03:05He was on a 2-0, and now he was on one.
03:08He was going to leave.
03:09Did you help people here?
03:12What is the help?
03:14I have no help.
03:16We have no help.
03:17We have no help.
03:19We have no help.
03:20We can help it out.
03:22The help is not.
03:23the
03:23sun
03:23the
03:24sun
03:26the
03:26sun
03:27the
03:28sun
03:29foreign
03:59If you look at TMC, you can put it in the DMC.
04:02Why don't you keep this cover?
04:14When you put this cover, it will be closed.
04:17Okay.
04:19How much is KGM?
04:21$80.
04:32The whole thing is what is the whole thing?
04:35It's a good thing.
04:37Okay, it's a good thing.
04:39Yes, it's a good thing.
04:40Tell me, what will happen in the election?
04:42He will win.
04:44Why?
04:45He is doing good work in Mumbai and Kolkata.
04:47What has he done?
04:48He has done everything.
04:49He has made votes.
04:51He has made votes.
04:53He has made votes.
04:53He has made votes.
04:54He has made votes.
04:56And you came to Mumbai and vote?
04:57He has made votes.
04:59He has made votes.
05:00I have made votes.
05:01What will you think about voting?
05:04Why will you win?
05:05Why do you win?
05:06It's good.
05:06It's good.
05:07The job is all I have.
05:08The job is not done in Kolkata.
05:10The job is winning.
05:12It's good.
05:12Everyone says, here is corruption.
05:14Cut money.
05:14There is a push.
05:15There is a push.
05:17You are not good.
05:17If you are right here, you are right here.
05:21In 2020, who are you with?
05:30foreign
05:35foreign
05:53The reason is that we are very good. We live in local. If something happened, then what would happen?
06:00What do you like about Mohdiji and Mohdiji?
06:02Overall, Mohdiji is very good.
06:06He is very good.
06:07He is not a bad guy.
06:14What is the biggest challenge for you in the election?
06:18He is not doing anything.
06:20He is not doing anything.
06:22What do you think?
06:23Why is it not?
06:23That they have been a lot of faith.
06:26Why?
06:27They have been a burden on their car.
06:28You think every five years of government should change?
06:31I should do it.
06:31I should do it.
06:36I should do it.
06:37I should do it.
06:39I should do it.
06:39I should do it.
06:43I should do it.
06:46I should do it.
06:54It is one of the closely watched contests here in South 24 Parganaz.
07:00I am in Sunarpur, Dakshin.
07:03It is here that the BJP has fielded a familiar television face, an actor who has turned politician.
07:10I am here to meet Rupa Ganguly.
07:13Rupadi, this is your house?
07:16Yes.
07:16And it is called Panchali.
07:18Yes, Panchali, Draupadi.
07:20It is behind your character?
07:22Yes.
07:24Our parents are from Bangladesh.
07:26So, we didn't have a place to stay.
07:29From my childhood, my only dream was to make a chat for my parents.
07:36This is my first home of my life.
07:39And today, you are fighting from there.
07:42My mother told me to give me a little land.
07:47So, I can put a little water here.
07:51So, Rupa Ganguly, let's continue this conversation.
08:01After playing the role of Draupadi, you entered the lives of each and every Indian.
08:07If you were to look at this battle, which you are fighting in your constituency and in general, the BJP
08:14fight in Bengal, compare it to that battle that you have seen as the character of Draupadi.
08:21Yes, there is one similarity, which is the Kurukshetra war.
08:27That is, Dharmraksha.
08:30The fight between right and wrong.
08:32As Bengal was suffering for many, many years, people were deprived for all the unfortunate political issues.
08:45And they always politicized everything in their daily life.
08:51I shouldn't be saying, but then we fooled the people here.
08:56And as Bengal people need to see good, responsible people who can make their lives better, simpler, easier.
09:05You said that this is almost similar to the battle of Kurukshetra, the battle between right and wrong.
09:12And Trinamur Congress would say that what is BJP's right is actually wrong for Trinamur's ideology.
09:19Yes, of course.
09:21That will be wrong for them.
09:22I fully agree.
09:23Because they wouldn't want us to protest on the kind of landfilling which has happened here.
09:28In two days or one day of rain or a few hours of rain, you know, all the drain waters
09:34or drains are clogged completely.
09:36So it will come up till here, your knee.
09:39And then you'll be floating around all over.
09:42This is the case of Shwana production.
09:45They have wasted government money like anything.
09:48Central government has been sending crowds.
09:51And this government, I don't know, how can they make common people suffer so much?
09:59Just not completing a metro railway.
10:02You're saying that Mahmata Banerjee deprived the people of Bengal of development?
10:07Yes.
10:07In all respect.
10:09Why do you say that?
10:11Many would say that Mahmata Banerjee as the Chief Minister in the last 15 years has also delivered on multiple
10:16promises,
10:17particularly taking care of the women of Bengal.
10:19You really believe that?
10:21They've taken care of women in Bengal?
10:24In the villages, ladies, young girls, they're just asking for security.
10:32These young girls are saying,
10:33We need to get started.
10:36We need to get started.
10:37We need to get started.
10:38We need to get started.
10:39We need to get started.
10:39We need to get started.
10:40Nobody's interested in West Bengal.
10:41They will not even allow to have lady police stations, which has been funded by the central government.
10:49Even then they will not allow.
10:51This transition that you have made from screen to streets, how has it been for you?
10:56See, it's been 10 years.
10:57Yes.
10:57It's been 10 years.
10:58You've been a member of Raji Sabha as well.
10:59Yes, yes, yes.
11:00What has shocked me that they can hit me, pull my hair down, hit me with the help of the
11:13police women, police officers standing by, watching it.
11:18How can they do such a thing?
11:21They can do anything to remain in power.
11:24They is who?
11:25TMC.
11:26You won't take Mamata Banerjee's name?
11:29What's the point of taking her name?
11:31If she says that she doesn't know who are involved in all the crimes, then I must say that she's
11:39a bad administrator.
11:41TMC says that the center is misusing its agencies, ED, CBI, all agencies are being misused.
11:47The election commission is biased.
11:50If they want to say, can they explain why and how so much of money gets discovered in their houses?
11:59If ED or CBI is a family, then how do they go?
12:02They have bombs, so many killings are happening, so many murders are happening.
12:06So how does it happen then?
12:08They are asking for free and fair election.
12:10And every rule have been asked to follow by every candidate.
12:17So what's wrong in following rules?
12:19But the deletion which has happened of multiple names who are, who have all the documents,
12:25they are legitimate residents of Bengal.
12:28They are being deprived the right to vote.
12:31Whose names have been deleted and who was on the charge of this?
12:35Tell me what.
12:35Election commission was controlling everything.
12:37But who was actually collecting the paper from my home and submitting the document to the EC office?
12:45Why don't they bring lady like Meera Pandey in election commission with Bengal?
12:51We want a strong woman like that.
12:53Mamata Banerjee is a strong woman.
12:55She has been fighting and she's a street fighter.
12:59She is fighting for wrong reasons and results are absolutely impossible to accept.
13:05The battle that is being fought in Bengal is intensely contested.
13:09It's a fiercely contested election between the BJP and the TMC.
13:13A bipolar contest.
13:15According to you, how is it?
13:17People really want a change.
13:19Jesus is telling me,
13:20Let me vote.
13:21Let me vote.
13:22That's it.
13:23That's it.
13:24What will you say about Duraupadi?
13:25The people who want it.
13:27In 2021-2026, it's just changed.
13:29It's very changed.
13:30My two men can know me as well.
13:34Other than the election.
13:36Simple rule.
13:37So I'm just standing right now.
13:54I say it all.
13:58I say this.
14:00I say that it is a good idea.
14:03I say that it is very bad.
14:03Have you had a good idea?
14:04You know, the issue of their children.
14:06What was the most important issue?
14:07My children are very happy. We are very happy. We are very happy.
14:59Thank you very much.
14:59Why change?
15:00If my uncle is doing some work, then why change?
15:03My uncle is doing some work.
15:05He is spending a lot of work,
15:08and I see that he is not doing a job,
15:10we are doing great work,
15:11and he has a lot of work,
15:14and this is how many people work.
15:14He is doing great work.
15:24What is the work done?
15:25The road, light, fire,
15:28what have you done?
15:31foreign
15:38foreign
16:05foreign
16:10foreign
16:28foreign
17:02We have to be more than a person.
17:10We have to be more than a person.
17:11We have to be more than a person.
17:38from three seats in 2016 to 77 and 38 percent vote in 2021 that's how the bjp gained its strength
17:50in bengal what's going to happen this time around someone who has seen both the size
17:55the tmc and the bjp is joining us now i can see bubble suprio right there hello maria i'm good
18:04how
18:04are you really good to see you now i'll be seeing more of you in delhi as a rajasabha mt
18:10yes absolutely
18:11i'm very grateful to dv visek and my party for giving me this uh this opportunity to you know
18:19to speak up for my for my state uh for bengalese for people staying in bengal there is this sense
18:25that uh people speak about poribartan a lot and they're also saying that the cut money culture
18:32and everything is something that they want to get rid of bjp has a complete army trolls it's a known
18:40fact so that they're doing their job but poribartan is definitely not happening because i'll take you
18:45to different places whether it's uttar pradesh madhya pradesh assam and i'll show you how much of
18:49cut money is happening there this time it has come to an absolutely new low in the debate in
18:55the lok sabha from our side from tmc four women spoke and no one no women was there to speak
19:01for bjp
19:01for that particular thing and we all know that women's reservation bill was actually passed in 2023
19:07but uh this was a ploy to bring in delimitation so you feel that the divisive politics that the bjp
19:14is
19:15projecting but there is a strong section which also feels uh bubble superior that uh mamata banerji
19:21has failed the women of bengal by not answering questions of their safety security and also on
19:28the question of accountability particularly with regards to the rg car incident because the victim's
19:33mother is contesting on a bjp ticket we have seen this kind of politicization happening before
19:37and uh i don't um i don't blame bjp for trying to use that card you talk about this money
19:43laundering
19:44and this people getting arrested by ed cbi and all of that there has been i think if i'm not
19:49mistaken
19:495 800 to 5 700 cases of pmla of that only the conviction rate is 0.08 percent that means
19:59only
19:59only a very few people i think eight or nine of them uh got actually convicted you know it's like
20:05one
20:05woman and you have uh the central government along with uh ed cbi the nia most sadly unfortunately the
20:13election commission of india you said that there's cut money culture also in the bjp rule states what
20:18do you know defending a negative thing with a negative thing is not right i will not resort to
20:23that because i know there are dark areas that exist in every party this is there in the lower level
20:27everything uh couldn't be controlled uh you know they did malign the party but the but bj but trinomul
20:34congress actually took strong stand against it they have suspended leaders out of 25 ministers
20:41in bjp right now 23 of them had some kind of conviction against them the moment they joined
20:46the bjp uh they're all exonerated of all of them this is a this is a true fact it's there
20:51in the papers
20:51it is the most famous washing machine why did you leave the bjp and join the trinomul congress
20:56every action has its equal and opposite reaction i mean if you are doing good work you would expect some
21:02kind of some kind of prop you know some climb in the ladder some promotion in the right direction
21:07you can't use and throw me you don't find respect love in there and my opposite reaction would
21:13definitely have been to go to a party to a leader who comes you welcomes you and says that you
21:18have
21:18done some great work do not leave politics retired hurt come and work for bengal and she gave me two
21:24fantastic ministries it and uh you know electronics i handled it for three and a half years i got uh
21:28tourism i got uh industry industry reconstruction and see my work what changed from being a bjp minister to
21:36then a mamata minister well my i never felt that this is going to happen but music was snatched
21:41away from me it it lived a little there was a little bit of you know flame in the lamp
21:45till arun jaitliji
21:46was alive after that it completely got extinguished i never got chance to for two foreign countries
21:52the honorable prime minister felt that you know a minister going on stage dancing and entertaining the
21:57crowd cracking joes and all of that is going to create a bad impression for the government and here
22:03didi said that you know you are in politics not by doing politics you came here because you're a
22:07singer that's how you got the seat so sing your heart out go anywhere you want to do anywhere you
22:12want to go don't be absent during the vidanshava i kept modana 90 percent 95 percent attendance don't do
22:17that do your work properly so let's end this conversation on the note that babul supriya is known for
22:43music or yeah i want to dedicate this to all those uh you know those booth agents of bjp who
22:53are going to
22:53wait outside seeing that all the voters planning up for tmc because didi is going to be the fourth
22:57time chief minister in a musical fashion what will you be telling the bjp telling the bjp
23:26it's all hands on deck also for the trinamul congress mp's ministers all of them campaigning
23:33aggressively across the state as i said bengal is voting in pockets there are several pockets
23:40which are still mamata's bastion perhaps we'll know the result on 4th of may what really happens
23:47in those pockets thanks so much for watching
23:51so
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