Within 24 hours of announcing social media influencer Nisha Chatterjee as the Janata Unnayan Party’s candidate from Ballygunge, party chief and Bharatpur
MLA Humayun Kabir dropped her, citing her “inappropriate social media posts” and declaring that the seat would instead go to a Muslim candidate. The abrupt reversal has triggered a sharp backlash from Chatterjee, who has accused the suspended Trinamool Congress MLA of publicly defaming her and betraying his promise of launching a “secular” political platform. She has threatened legal action and said she may consider contesting the assembly election as an Independent. Kabir had unveiled Chatterjee as his party’s Ballygunge face at a rally on Monday, with the influencer standing beside him on stage. By Tuesday, however, he told reporters that her online presence and “mannerisms” were unsuitable for public office. “Her social media posts are inappropriate. They are completely unfit for her to step into a holy place like the Bengal assembly,” Kabir said. He added that he would announce the name of a Muslim candidate for Ballygunge within a week and that he was consulting local representatives before finalising the decision.
'Publicly maligned me'
Chatterjee said she was blindsided by both the initial announcement and her sudden removal. She claimed she had been in touch with Kabir since June, when he inaugurated her café in Picnic Garden, and that he had spoken of forming a party open to people from all religious backgrounds. According to her, she had been invited to a December 22 programme with the understanding that she would be made a state committee member — not declared a candidate.
“I am shocked that within 24 hours my social media posts suddenly became ‘vulgar’,” she told reporters as per PTI. “He will have to explain why he publicly maligned me.” She said Kabir had used her popularity to promote his fledgling party, pointing out that she had a larger social media following than him. “I am an influencer. This is how I earn my living. You cannot walk away after damaging my reputation,” she said.
Who is Nisha Chatterjee?
Chatterjee, who graduated from Jogamaya Devi College in 2018 and built her following through TikTok videos, alleged that her removal was driven by religious considerations. “I have been dropped because I am a Hindu. If his party was truly secular, would this have happened?” she said, adding that she had supported Kabir on contentious issues, including his Babri Masjid-related statements. “Then why did he do this to me?”She also took aim at Kabir’s declaration that Ballygunge would now have a Muslim candidate. “That itself shows his party is not secular. He is trying to create a divide between Hindus and Muslims,” she said. Calling the episode deeply embarrassing for her family, Chatterjee said she had begun consulting lawyers to file a defamation case.
With input from PTI
