<p>The Election Commission data for the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/elections/west-bengal/west-bengal-assembly-election-results-2026-live-updates-a-change-of-guard-in-offing-or-will-bengal-pick-mamata-again-bjp-tmc-congress-mamata-modi-amit-shah-sir-election-commission-vote-counting-may-4-exit-polls-results-3989513">West Bengal polls</a> showed the mother of the RG Kar rape-murder victim and BJP candidate <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/elections/west-bengal/west-bengal-assembly-elections-2026-ratna-debnath-mother-of-rg-kar-victim-gets-bjp-ticket-3983055">Ratna Debnath </a>leading in the Panihati assembly constituency. </p><p>She was ahead of the Trinamool Congress nominee by 5067 votes after the second round of counting. Ratna bagged 13784 votes while the TMC's Tirthankar Ghosh secured 8717 votes.</p><p>Ratna's daughter, a doctor on duty, was raped and murdered in Kolkata's state-run RG Medical College and Hospital in August 2024. </p>.West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 | Women's safety top priority: Mother of R G Kar rape-murder victim.<p>The doctor’s mother joined BJP and stepped into the political realm as a candidate for West Bengal’s state legislature. </p><p>“I’ve lost my daughter and my house has become empty, but I want to ensure the safety of thousands of women,” Debnath, 54, said. “That’s why I’ve joined politics," she is quoted in media reports. </p><p>By choosing to join the saffron party, which sought her candidacy for months, she also become a figure in Modi’s broader campaign to position his party nationwide as a champion of women.</p>
<p>The Election Commission data for the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/elections/west-bengal/west-bengal-assembly-election-results-2026-live-updates-a-change-of-guard-in-offing-or-will-bengal-pick-mamata-again-bjp-tmc-congress-mamata-modi-amit-shah-sir-election-commission-vote-counting-may-4-exit-polls-results-3989513">West Bengal polls</a> showed the mother of the RG Kar rape-murder victim and BJP candidate <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/elections/west-bengal/west-bengal-assembly-elections-2026-ratna-debnath-mother-of-rg-kar-victim-gets-bjp-ticket-3983055">Ratna Debnath </a>leading in the Panihati assembly constituency. </p><p>She was ahead of the Trinamool Congress nominee by 5067 votes after the second round of counting. Ratna bagged 13784 votes while the TMC's Tirthankar Ghosh secured 8717 votes.</p><p>Ratna's daughter, a doctor on duty, was raped and murdered in Kolkata's state-run RG Medical College and Hospital in August 2024. </p>.West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 | Women's safety top priority: Mother of R G Kar rape-murder victim.<p>The doctor’s mother joined BJP and stepped into the political realm as a candidate for West Bengal’s state legislature. </p><p>“I’ve lost my daughter and my house has become empty, but I want to ensure the safety of thousands of women,” Debnath, 54, said. “That’s why I’ve joined politics," she is quoted in media reports. </p><p>By choosing to join the saffron party, which sought her candidacy for months, she also become a figure in Modi’s broader campaign to position his party nationwide as a champion of women.</p>