Kolkata: The Nandigram Assembly bypoll took a dramatic turn on Friday after Congress candidate Milan Pradhan was arrested in an old murder case, just hours after Mamata Banerjee's faction announced its support for him in the October 6 election.

The timing of the arrest drew a sharp reaction from Banerjee, who questioned why action was taken against Pradhan immediately after her faction decided to back his candidature.

“Minutes after we extended our support to the Congress candidate for the bypoll in Nandigram, the Congress candidate Milan Pradhan was arrested,” Banerjee said in a post on X.

She alleged that the BJP was following its “politics of vendetta” and questioned why an old case was being acted upon at this stage of the election.

“But why now? Just after we announced support to the Congress!” she said.

Banerjee also accused the Election Commission and the BJP of working together, alleging that “manipulation”, “vote loot” and “intimidation” were undermining democracy. These were her political allegations, and no evidence for the claims was provided in her statement.

Congress also reacted sharply to Pradhan's arrest. Party spokesperson Mita Chakraborty said the arrest came within hours of Banerjee announcing support for the Congress candidate and questioned whether such actions were aimed at intimidating the opposition.

“If you resort to intimidation—refusing to give space to the opposition—do you want autocracy or democracy in this country?” Chakraborty said.

She added that any attempt to stop the Congress or the opposition through such threats would be a “complete misconception”.

Why Mamata backed the Congress candidate

The arrest followed a series of rapid developments in the Nandigram contest. Banerjee's faction had initially fielded Sanchita Pradhan Dey, but she withdrew her candidature after a meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari at the state secretariat, Nabanna.

With the faction no longer having a candidate in the contest, Banerjee announced that it would support Congress nominee Milan Pradhan instead. She described the Congress as a “sister party” and said the decision was intended to strengthen the INDIA bloc.

Pradhan was arrested by West Bengal Police in connection with an old murder case. Police sources said he was an accused in the case and that an arrest warrant had been issued.

He is expected to be produced before a court in Haldia on Saturday, which is also the deadline for withdrawal of nominations for the Nandigram bypoll.

The final list of candidates will emerge after the withdrawal process ends.

With agency inputs