West Bengal Assembly election 2021, Babul Supriyo profile: BJP fields Union minister, BJP MP from Tollygunge seat

BJP has fielded Union minister, BJP MP and singer Babul Supriyo from the Tollygunge Assembly constituency in the upcoming West Bengal Assembly polls.

Supriyo, who changed his birth name Supriya Baral on entering Bollywood in the mid 1990s, is contesting against TMC’s Aroop Biswas from the seat, which will go to polls in the fourth of eight phases on 10 April.

He entered into politics in the 2014 and defeated TMC’s Dola Sen from the Asansol Lok Sabha constituency in the general polls conducted that year. He was given the berth of Union Minister of State, Ministry of Urban Development, and Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation on 9 November, 2014. In July 2016, his portfolio was changed to Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.

Supriyo defeated Moon Moon Sen by 1.97 lakh votes in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. In May 2019, he became Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

On 19 September, 2019, he was gheraoed and allegedly heckled by a section of students in the Jadavpur University for nearly six hours. Supriyo went there to attend a seminar organised by ABVP inside the campus. The members of the Students Federation of India (SFI), the student's wing of the CPM, and the Arts Faculty Students Union (AFSU) stopped him from entering the campus. They also raised “go back” slogans and showed black flags to the Minister. When he tried to leave the campus after the seminar concluded, hundreds of students blocked his path, demanding that he should apologise for his alleged offensive behaviour with them. He was later rescued by Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar who rushed to the scene.

Born on 15 December, 1970 in Uttarpara, Supriyo attended Kolkata’s Don Bosco School and later earned a B.Com degree from Serampore College.

The Tollygunge Assembly constituency lies in the South 24 Parganas district, and is a part of the Jadavpur Lok Sabha constituency.

Elections for the West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases, up from seven last time, beginning with polling for 30 seats on 27 March. The second phase of West Bengal's assembly elections has been scheduled for 1 April and will cover 30 constituencies, followed by the third phase on 6 April for 31 seats, the fourth on 10 April for 44 constituencies, the fifth on 17 April for 45 seats, sixth for 43 seats on 22 April, seventh phase on 26 April for 36 seats and last and eighth phase on 29 April for 35 seats.

The results of the election will be declared on 2 May.