Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday surprised political analysts by handpicking Pratima Bhowmik, an incumbent Union minister from Tripura, to contest the upcoming state elections, raising speculations that she could be the new CM pick over incumbent Dr Manik Saha.
BJP insiders say that the Union minister for social justice and empowerment was initially offered the Agartala-6 Assembly seat where sitting MLA Sudip Roy Barman has been a strong candidate for Congress.
However, she was allocated the Dhanpur constituency in West Tripura district in the BJP’s list of candidates published on Saturday. Dhanpur has long been represented by a four-time chief minister and Tripura’s longest-serving MLA, Manik Sarkar of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Sarkar is unlikely to contest this election.
Bhaumik’s candidature has raised her political stock in the state with many expecting that she could be a replacement of chief minister Manik Saha as many in the BJP feel that many Congress defectors are being given prominent positions too soon.
Many feel it was too early for the party to make Saha – who joined the BJP from Congress in 2016 – the chief minister of Tripura in May last year.
On the other hand, Bhoumik has been with the BJP since 1991 when the saffron party had almost no significance in the then Left ruled state.
Apart from her staunch allegiance to the BJP ideology, many other factors like her excellent track record as a public figure, her connection with the masses, and her humble family background work in her favour.
She hails from a family of farmers in the remote Dhanpur village of the Sonamura sub-division in the Sepahijala district.
Bhoumik won the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from the 1-West Tripura parliamentary constituency with a margin of more than 3 lakh votes. In July 2021, she took oath as a Union minister to become the first permanent resident of Tripura to do so.
It is her ability to connect with people easily that has earned her the nickname ‘Didi’. Popular among social, cultural and religious groups, Bhoumik is credited with launching and spearheading many social initiatives like blood donation.
In 2021, she initiated a weekly blood donation camp at Tripura’s main hospital, the state government-run Govind Ballabh Pant (GBP) Hospital in Agartala based on her belief that ‘blood is a red gold in the time of saving a life’. Under this initiative, 10 youths donate blood every Tuesday at the hospital.
When devastating floods wreaked havoc in Assam, Bhoumik – who was serving as Tripura BJP general secretary – earned accolades by donating her one month’s salary for relief work.