Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee reached out to party veteran Akhil Giri over the phone and invited him to a meeting, sparking speculation about his candidacy for the October 6 Nandigram bypoll.
The bypoll was necessitated after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari retained Bhabanipur and resigned from Nandigram, making the constituency a crucial battleground for the TMC to rebuild its political ground.
The party enters the contest amid an organisational crisis and a dispute before the Election Commission between Mamata Banerjee's camp and a rebel faction over the TMC name and symbol.