KOLKATA: The bypolls scheduled for October 6 in the two high-voltage Assembly constituencies of Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal are set to be an early test of the ruling BJP’s acceptability among voters, particularly minorities, following the change in government in the state.
The bypolls will also shed light on the strength of the Opposition, particularly the CPI(M)-led Left and the Congress, after the split in the Trinamool Congress, which suffered a humiliating defeat to the BJP in the Assembly polls held in April in Bengal. The BJP formed the government in the state for the first time, winning 208 of the 294 Assembly constituencies, while the Trinamool Congress was restricted to 80 seats.
Tuesday’s bypoll contests in the two seats will give the BJP an early indication of voter response to its governance since taking office on May 11, while Opposition parties compete for space in a fragmented field. The ruling party and its rivals will also seek to gauge the voting preferences of the minority electorate.
The bypolls in the two seats carry political significance, particularly against the backdrop of non-BJP political forces, along with the CJP, intensifying their movement in Delhi and other parts of the country demanding the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the conduct of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Political observer Prof Biswanath Chakraborty said the contests were significant because the BJP’s emergence as the ruling party had created a new political vacuum for the Opposition.
“The main issue is who occupies the Opposition space against the BJP. The bypolls will give us an indication of which party has the potential to emerge as the principal challenger,” he said.
The bypolls cannot be seen as a verdict on the performance of a five-month-old administration, but could provide early indications of public response to its governance and policy choices.
Nandigram offers the more symbolically charged contest. The seat was the epicentre of Mamata Banerjee’s anti-land acquisition movement that helped pave the way for the TMC’s rise in 2011. It was also where BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari defeated Banerjee in 2021. Adhikari, now chief minister, won Nandigram again in the 2026 Assembly election but retained Bhabanipur, necessitating the bypoll.
Considering the significant Muslim vote share in Rejinagar and Nandigram, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has been extending a ‘hand of friendship’ to minority voters in the two constituencies.
Rejinagar in Murshidabad district has around 70 per cent minority voters, while in Nandigram, Suvendu’s home turf in Purba Medinipur, the figure is around 30 per cent.
Projecting himself as a leader for all, the Chief Minister, while addressing an election campaign in Nandigram on Friday, delivered a message of friendship in an effort to woo Muslim voters, urging them to unite with the BJP in the October 6 Assembly bypoll.
“I tell my minority brothers and sisters, do not turn your backs anymore. This is the opportunity for friendship. Let us all unite and ensure the win of the BJP candidate on 6 October,” he said while campaigning for the BJP candidate.
“Will the minorities turn their backs on us? What will be the benefit of that? You are our friends. Let us be friends. The 6th is an auspicious day for friendship. Join hands to become friends. We will do it for the welfare of all. Our leader Narendra Modi ji works for everyone, and the Chief Minister will also do it for everyone. So you have to make friends,” Suvendu added.
The BJP has nominated Hasirani Rath, mother of Chandranath Rath, a former personal assistant to Suvendu Adhikari, from Nandigram, where the former Chief Minister was defeated by Suvendu in the 2021 Assembly elections. Chandranath was shot dead on May 6, two days after the BJP won the Assembly elections in the state. Hasirani’s candidature has added an emotional dimension to the contest.
The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction’s nominee, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew her name after meeting Suvendu, following which Banerjee, left without a candidate, backed Congress candidate Milan Pradhan and described the move as an effort to strengthen the INDIA bloc.
Pradhan was arrested in old cases linked to the 2007 Nandigram land acquisition agitation but later secured interim bail and returned to campaign. The rival TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque under the envelope symbol and a separate temporary party identity. The CPI has nominated Santigopal Giri. The Mamata Banerjee faction has announced that it will transfer its support to the Congress, while the BJP hopes to retain its Assembly advantage.
Rejinagar presents a different political equation. The seat fell vacant after Humayun Kabir, who won both Rejinagar and Nowda in the 2026 Assembly election, retained Nowda. His Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) has fielded his son, Golam Nabi Azad. Kabir had won Rejinagar by nearly 59,000 votes.
The BJP has fielded Sakharav Sarkar, former Murshidabad district president, from Rejinagar, while the CPI(M) has given its ticket to lawyer Syed Asad Ali. The Mamata-led Trinamool Congress has nominated Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, while the rival Trinamool faction has fielded Safiuzzaman Sheikh. The Congress nominee is Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi.
For the Mamata faction, Rejinagar is a test of whether it can retain traction after losing the original Trinamool Congress name and symbol following an Election Commission directive.
The CPI(M) candidate is reaching out to voters in Rejinagar, intensifying attacks on the BJP over what it describes as identity politics based on religion, and on the Trinamool over alleged corruption during its 15-year rule. The BJP has said it does not view the contests through a religious lens. The seat’s minority electorate also gives the BJP an opportunity to test whether its appeal can extend beyond its traditional support base.
The verdict in the two bypolls will be watched for three key signals: whether the BJP’s electoral momentum has survived its transition from the Opposition benches to government; which party can emerge as its principal challenger; and whether the Trinamool Congress, which is reeling from an unprecedented crisis after its poll debacle, can prove its relevance, particularly at a time when the CPI(M) is emerging as a challenger to the saffron camp.
The results of the bypolls will be announced on October 9.