West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will start campaigning for the upcoming Assembly elections from North Bengal on March 24 (Tuesday) while her nephew and party’s second-in-command Abhishek Banerjee will start with election rallies in southern districts, it is learnt.The move is aimed at simultaneously connecting with voters in the state’s two different political battlegrounds.On March 24, the CM will hold a mega rally at Alipurduar Parade Ground before addressing meetings at Matigara in Darjeeling district and Maynaguri in Jalpaiguri the same day.The move is being seen as an attempt by the TMC leadership to wrest back political ground in the northern belt, where the BJP had made deep inroads in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and retained a strong presence through the 2021 Assembly elections.“The CM herself leading the charge from Alipurduar sends a message that the party is taking the BJP’s challenge in north Bengal seriously,” a senior TMC leader said.Also Read | He helped Suvendu Adhikari defeat Mamata in Nandigram. Now he stands in the way: Who is Pabitra Kar?The CM will leave for north Bengal after addressing a workers’ conference in her own constituency, Bhabanipur, on Sunday evening, where she is likely to outline the party’s booth-level strategy for the upcoming polls, it is learnt.State TMC president Subrata Bakshi, Cabinet minister and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, South Kolkata district president Debasish Kumar and councillors from the area will attend the meeting at Chetla of the Bhabanipur segment.Story continues below this adThe mobilisation assumes significance as Bhabanipur, traditionally considered Mamata’s political backyard, has emerged as a closely watched constituency after the BJP fielded Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari against her.Party insiders said the leadership is keen to ensure there is “no room for complacency” despite Bhabanipur’s reputation as a TMC stronghold.Moreover, the stakes went up after the Election Commission’s revision of electoral rolls in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), which reportedly led to the deletion of around 47,000 names from the constituency’s voter list.Abhishek, the party’s national general secretary, will kick off his campaign from Patharpratima in South 24 Parganas on the same day.Story continues below this adFrom there, Abhishek is expected to hold public meetings in the Medinipur belt, addressing rallies in Daspur, Keshiary and Narayangarh on March 25 before holding a workers’ meeting in Nandigram.Also Read | ‘You shake hands abroad, but once back you call for voter deletions’: Mamata’s SIR swipe at ModiThe Nandigram visit carries symbolic and political significance as the constituency had emerged as the epicentre of the 2021 Assembly election when Mamata was defeated by Adhikari in a high-voltage contest.This time, the TMC has fielded Pabitra Kar, a former associate of Adhikari who recently switched sides and joined the ruling party, setting the stage for another closely watched contest. Political analysts believe Abhishek’s early focus on the Medinipur region reflects the party’s effort to blunt the BJP’s organisational strength in the Jangalmahal and coastal belts.Meanwhile, CM Banerjee on Saturday paid a courtesy visit to newly inaugurated Governor R N Ravi at the Lok Bhavan in Kolkata.Story continues below this adBanerjee, while entering the Lok Bhavan, told reporters that she was invited for tea by the governor on the day he took oath of office on March 12. After the meeting, she said, “It was a courtesy meeting with no agenda.”The CM had earlier questioned the sudden resignation of previous Governor C V Ananda Bose and the appointment of Ravi to the post.(With PTI inputs)