Dalit and adiwasi are in the centre of attraction
West Bengal’s political scenario gradually tilting towards the caste based narratives and agendas. Every party trying to gain favor and trying to appease them by many ways. The upcoming Elections are scheduled to be held in West Bengal in 2026. All parties are seeking alignment in their own way. This time, all parties are focused on the state’s Dalit and Adivasi voters. After the Muslim community, if there is one community with the largest population in West Bengal, it is the Dalits. West Bengal’s Scheduled Caste (SC) population was 21,463,270 according to the 2011 Census of India, accounting for 23.5% (or roughly a quarter) of the state’s total population. However, some sources report that West Bengal’s SC population is approximately 11% of all SCs in India, distributed across 60 sub communities with a notable presence in districts like North 24 Parganas, Nadia and coochbehar. However, there is no recent data available so far (post-2011) from government. So, we cannot estimate the exact figure. If we added up the tribal population in this force. The total stand as almost 30 percent of total population of west bengal. Because the the tribal population in the west Bengal is approx 5296963, accounting for 5.8 percent. They are major decisive factor in the region of purulia, bankura, medinipore, birbhum and north Bengal in combined.
In the West Bengal assembly 84 seats are reserved for the SC and ST communities. In 2021 Assembly elections, half of the BJP’s final total of 77 members came from reserved constituencies. The saffron camp won 38 of the 84 seats set aside in the state for SC and ST candidates. Eighteen of the Dalit seats that the BJP won are from north Bengal region, where the party gained significant ground in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and won the highest ever 18 loksabha seats. From the total figure of reserved seats 31 SC-dominated seats and seven ST-dominated seats were won by the BJP. Mostly in the areas where Matuas, a Hindu religious sect made up of immigrants from Bangladesh, control a large number of seats. In fact, the Matua community has an influence on at least 40 of West Bengal’s 294 assembly constituencies. These seats are primarily concentrated in North 24 Parganas, Nadia, and South 24 Parganas. Additionally, there are 20 other seats where the Matua community has an indirect influence. These seats are located in the Hooghly district and in Cooch Behar and surrounding areas of North Bengal. They constitute 17 percent of West Bengal’s total population.
The controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which West Bengal chief minister Manata Banerjee vehemently opposes, offered them citizenship. Previously, many members of the Matua community had doubts about the CAA and NRC. Then BJP announced that it will open more than 700 CAA camps in West Bengal. The Matua community consists of Hindu refugees who migrated from East Bengal and present-day Bangladesh. Ethnically, they are classified as Scheduled Caste (Namasudra). 2021 assembly election CAA and NRC proved as a double edeged sword for saffron brigade. Where, trinamool congress managed to convinced the majority of people that it subjugate there citizenship because of they don’t have any proper documents other than the voter card and adhar card.
In the matua influenced region bjp won only 10 seats comparising Gazole in Malda, Krishnaganj, Ranaghat (South), Ranaghat (North-East), Kalyani and Haninghata in Nadia and Bagda, Bongaon (North), Bongaon (South), and Gaighata in North 24 Parganas are among them. In the north Bengal region, where the Rajbanshi group makes up a sizable portion of the voters, the saffron camp appears to have managed to hold onto their Dalit vote-bank. However, the saffron movement was rejected by the Dalits in Junglemahal region, which includes Purulia, Jhargram, West Midnapore, and portions of Bankura districts. Where they managed only three of the twelve Dalit-dominated seats. Rest of the majority of seats goes to Trinamool congress.
In the 2021 assembly elections, the CAA and NRC were significant issues for the Matua community, leading to a division of their votes. The Trinamool Congress had strongly raised these issues. This time, the SIR (Special Identity Register) has emerged as the main issue in the elections. Approximately one lakh members of the Matua community have reportedly been excluded from the voter list. This has led to tension between the BJP MP from Bongaon and his own brother. If these names remain excluded from the list, the BJP could suffer a direct loss, and the Trinamool Congress could capitalize on the situation.
Despite the tension and concerns are growing regarding the votes of the Matua community due to SIR, BJP leaders are enthusiastic about the SIR (Special Identity Registration) bill. But some voices within from the main opposition party are questioning the process. Asim Sarkar, the BJP MLA from Haringhata in Nadia district, has himself warned the party. Asim Sarkar is a representative of the Matua community, and his victory in 2021 was largely due to the support of this vote bank. He says, “If there is any tampering with the citizenship of the Matua community, the BJP will not be spared also.”
Meanwhile, prominent face of matua community and BJP leader shantanu Thakur trying to calm the rising waves. Shantanu Thakur is the Member of Parliament from Bongaon loksabha seat since 2019 and esteemed member of the Thakur family. His father manjul Krishna Thakur is a respected leader of matua community and ex-minister of Bengal. Shantanu Thakur claims that if any member of the Matua community is left out of the SIR voter list, they will be granted citizenship again through the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act). No Hindu refugee from Bangladesh will have their citizenship revoked. Regarding the CAA camps, BJP state president Sukanta Bhattacharya said, “The BJP is atoning for the sins committed by the Congress during and after the partition of the country. We are in favor of Bangladeshi Hindu refugees. This is our declared stance. We will set up camps for them, we will provide financial assistance. As long as the BJP is in power, no one will be able to harm a single hair of any refugee Hindu.”
While the BJP is in a dilemma regarding the CAA and the Matua community, the Trinamool Congress is also seizing the opportunity. According to Trinamool’s state general secretary Kunal Ghosh- “The Matua community will suffer the most from the CAA. Shantanu Thakur has understood this. This is a futile attempt to cover up the truth. We are completely with the Matua community. The Chief Minister is with them. The BJP is directionless; it has ignored Bengal’s funds and dues. If you speak up in Bengal, you face retaliation. This time they will manipulate the voter list. They are trying to show that they are targeting Muslims. But this time, Hindus are also at risk.”
The Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari come into the aid and says, “If the SIR bill is passed, the names of illegal Bangladeshi Muslims will be removed. Only then can the Trinamool Congress be removed from power.” While Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and Shantanu Thakur trying to assure the matua people but the gaighata mla of bjp subrata Thakur, brother of Shantanu Thakur and Haringhata MLA Aseem Sarkar taking aggressive stance. Subrata Thakur launched a new wing of All India Matua Mahasangha. Matua Mahasangha already had the two wings- one headed by the Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Mamatabala Thakur and second by Shantanu Thakur. Subrata was the joint head of the second wing along with his brother. After the rising tensions between the brothers he launched third wing. Where he included Suvendu Adhikary the leader of opposition, Aseem Sarkar Bjp MLA from Haringhata, Ashok Kirtaniya mla from Bongaon north and Bongaon south MLA Swapan Majumdar in the advisory board of his wing.
On one hand, the BJP is trying to win over Dalit voters in Bengal, while on the other hand, the ruling Trinamool Congress wants to capitalize on the confusion created by the situation. Both sides are making strenuous efforts to woo Dalits and tribal communities, which is indicative of the changing political landscape in Bengal.
Like the Dalits in Bengal, the tribal population is scattered across different regions. Despite this, they play a decisive role in many constituencies. On one hand, there are the tribals of Purulia, Jhargram, Bankura, and Midnapore – areas bordering Jharkhand and Odisha. Their problems are distinct. However, the tribals in the North Bengal regions face different challenges. They are primarily tea garden workers for whom land ownership rights and minimum wages are the core issues.
Although the total number of tribal people in the state is not large enough to make a significant difference, they can still have an impact in certain areas. The regions bordering Jharkhand and Odisha, and the North Bengal region, are particularly important. The tribal communities in areas like Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, and Midnapore appear divided. In 2019, the BJP achieved considerable success in this region, winning all four seats. However, they were unable to replicate that success in 2021 and 2024. The influence of Jharkhand politics is also visible among the tribal communities here. Conversely, the BJP has managed to maintain its position in the hilly and sub-Himalayan regions of North Bengal, for reasons of its own. The hills and plains are primarily covered with tea gardens, and the long-standing problems of the people working there remain unresolved. When Mamata Banerjee’s government came to power, there was initial enthusiasm among the people here, but that enthusiasm gradually faded. The demand for a separate Gorkhaland state, along with the demands for land ownership rights and minimum wages for tea garden workers, remain crucial issues.
A new political movement emerged in the hills under the leadership of Bimal Gurung, which intensified the demand for Gorkhaland. However, the tribal communities of the Terai region did not support this demand as vociferously, fearing that they might become second-class citizens in the new state. But the movement was so powerful that the then government was forced to compromise, and on March 14, 2012, the Gorkha Territorial Administration was established. However, the problems of the Terai tribals remained unresolved. They do not have ownership rights over the land they have inhabited for generations. As a result, tea garden owners treat them like bonded laborers. They neither receive minimum wages nor timely bonuses. One member of each family is forced to work in the tea gardens; otherwise, they are served with eviction notices. Furthermore, the government’s Tea Sundari Scheme and Tea Tourism Scheme have raised questions about their very existence. In this situation, the opposition has adopted their issues as its own and strengthened its position in the region. The Terai tribals have no political allegiance; they stand with whoever stands with them on their issues. The ruling party faces the challenge of finding a way to resolve this problem.
A Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) has been formed in Bengal, yet the problems of the tribal communities here remain unresolved. Meetings are held repeatedly, but the situation remains unchanged. Under the guise of tea tourism, the government has agreed to give 30 percent of the plantation land to private organizations, but those who have lived on and cultivated this land for generations have still not received land titles. Meanwhile, in the neighboring state of Assam, the government has agreed to grant land titles for 23 decimal plots to tea garden workers. Naturally, the tribal communities here are also looking towards that example, wondering when their demands will be met. Whatever the case, in the current political landscape of Bengal, Dalits and tribals have collectively demonstrated their importance, and this is why both the ruling party and the opposition are leaving no stone unturned to win their support.
