Babul Supriyo, former Union minister of state who recently switched over from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to the Trinamool Congress (TMC), did not feature in the list of star campaigners that the ruling party issued on Friday for the October 30 bypolls to four assembly segments in West Bengal. In a related development, actor-turned-TMC MP Nusrat Jahan, who recently made headlines over her alleged relationship with another actor-turned-BJP leader, also did not feature in the list.

Trinamool supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who solidified her post days ago after winning the Bhabanipur by-election with a record vote margin, is expectedly among the star campaigners featured in the TMC list. Among other names are Trinamool Congress general secretary and Mamata’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee, and other film artist-turned-politicians such as Dev, Mimi Chakraborty, Raj Chakraborty, and Sayani Ghosh. Veteran Trinamool leaders such as Subrata Mukherjee, Firhad Hakim, Sougata Roy, and Arup Biswas were also featured in the list of campaigners for the upcoming bypolls.

Also Read | Babul Supriyo says Mamata Banerjee’s words music to his ears

Nusrat Jahan and Babul Supriyo are among the notable names missing from the list. Jahan actively campaigned for the party ahead of the West Bengal assembly elections held in March-April earlier this year. Supriyo, on the other hand, switched over from the BJP ahead of the Bhabanipur bypolls. According to reports, he requested Mamata Banerjee to spare him “the embarrassment of campaigning against long-time BJP friend Priyanka Tibrewal”. Now the Trinamool has skipped any mention of him in the list of campaigners for the upcoming bypolls as well.

Also Read | Trinamool MP cautions his party as another TMC rebel returns from BJP

Meanwhile, the BJP’s list of star campaigners for the Bengal by-elections features a number of heavyweight names from outside the state such as Union minister Smriti Irani, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and Bihar MP Giriraj Singh. From inside the state, too, the party has roped in veteran leaders such as national vice president Dilip Ghosh, leader of opposition in the state assembly Suvendu Adhikari and BJP Bengal chief Sukanta Majumdar for the campaigning. Union ministers and North Bengal MPs John Barla and Nisith Pramanik, and minister-MP from the Matua community Santanu Thakur were also featured in the BJP list.