The Jangal Mahal region, recognised as Bengal’s tribal belt consisting of five districts, will go to polls in the sixth phase on Saturday.
A hotspot for identity politics, the region sends eight representatives to the Lok Sabha from Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura, and Bishnupur seats.
Out of the eight seats, the Bharatiya Janata Party won five and Trinamool Congress bagged three in the 2019 polls.
A total of 1.45 crore voters, including 73.63 lakh men, 71.70 lakh women, and 133 persons of the third gender, are eligible to exercise their franchise in 15,600 polling stations of which 2,678 are critical in the penultimate phase, an election official said.
Of the 79 candidates in the fray, Bankura and Jhargram each have the highest number of 13 contestants, followed by Purulia (12), and nine each in Medinipur and Tamluk, he said.
Seven candidates each are contesting from Bishnupur and Ghatal Lok Sabha seats, the election official said.
Around 919 companies of central forces will be deployed in this phase, whereas more than 29,000 state police also will be deployed.
Except in the Ghatal seat, which is represented by two-time MP and cine star Dev aka Dipak Adhikari and is still a stronghold of the TMC, the political equations have changed drastically in Purba Medinipur district where the Tamluk and Kanthi Lok Sabha seats are situated and were won by the Mamata Banerjee-led party in 2019.
The balance of power in the region shifted in favour of the BJP following Suvendu Adhikari’s switch in 2021, despite TMC’s resurgence and strengthened influence through welfare schemes targeted at tribal Kurmi and Mahato communities.
The upcoming elections will serve as a litmus test for the endurance of dynasty politics, revealing whether the Adhikari family's support base follows them across party lines and demonstrating the durability of their political legacy.
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