Alipurduar BJP functionaries upset over candidate selection Resentment shown by leaders and workers underlines allegations that the party does not have much bench strength in Bengal
The BJP on Sunday announced economist Ashok Lahiri as the candidate for the Alipurduar Assembly seat and moments later, district party president Ganga Prasad Sharma said he could not divulge much about the nominee as he knew little about the contestant.
Sharma’s candid statement has reflected the general mood among Alipurduar district BJP functionaries who seemed peeved over the national leadership’s decision to field the candidate without consulting them.
“I came to know from the media that Ashok Lahiri would contest from Alipurduar. I don’t know him. So, how can I speak about him?” Sharma told this correspondent a few hours after Lahiri’s name had been announced.