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For Suvendu Adhikari, Nandigram has been at the heart of his political journey and his rivalry with Mamata Banerjee.
Adhikari went on to become an MLA from Nandigram in 2016 and even defeated Mamata Banerjee in 2021. (Photo: PTI file)
The Nandigram bypoll has turned into far more than a routine by-election, with a series of dramatic developments reshaping the contest just weeks before polling.
Mamata Banerjee-led faction’s candidate, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew her nomination after meeting Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari at Nabanna, the state secretariat. She has not publicly disclosed the reason for her withdrawal.
Hours after her exit, Banerjee announced that her faction would instead support Congress candidate Milan Pradhan in the Nandigram contest. But that arrangement was thrown into further uncertainty after Pradhan was arrested in connection with an old case.
The BJP, meanwhile, has fielded Hasirani Rath, the mother of Adhikari’s slain aide Chandranath Rath. Rath was killed in Madhyamgram on May 6, shortly after the Assembly election results, and the CBI is probing the case.
Adhikari’s home turf
For Suvendu Adhikari, the Nandigram bypoll carries significance well beyond the fate of a single Assembly seat. The constituency has been at the heart of his political journey and his rivalry with Mamata Banerjee.
Adhikari is already a familiar political face in Nandigram. He was at the forefront of the agitation against land acquisition in the region, alongside his then political mentor Mamata Banerjee. The movement over the proposed acquisition of farmland in Nandigram became one of the defining political battles in Bengal and played a major role in the Left Front’s eventual decline in the state.
Adhikari went on to become an MLA from Nandigram in 2016 and even defeated Mamata Banerjee in 2021. That contest transformed the constituency into a national political flashpoint. Adhikari defeated Banerjee by 1,956 votes in Nandigram in the 2021 Assembly election. In the 2026 election, he retained the seat, defeating TMC candidate Pabitra Kar by 9,665 votes. He subsequently chose to retain Bhabanipur, which he had also won, and vacated Nandigram, triggering the bypoll.
The October 6 contest is therefore a test of whether the BJP can retain Nandigram after Adhikari himself moved to Bhabanipur. Adhikari has continued to campaign in the constituency, keeping himself closely involved in the contest.
I’d frame this as a political-stakes section and avoid calling a defeat “likely” or using “would avoid” unless you have a source for the campaign plans.
Adhikari’s First Political Test As CM
The political stakes extend beyond Nandigram. Rejinagar will also go to the polls on October 6, making the two bypolls the first electoral test for Suvendu Adhikari since he became West Bengal chief minister.
Unlike the 2026 Assembly election, when the BJP’s campaign featured its top central leadership, the bypolls are expected to place greater focus on the party’s state unit and Adhikari’s own political leadership.
Adhikari was not the BJP’s chief ministerial face during the Assembly election. With the party now in power in Bengal, the bypolls give him an opportunity to establish his authority within the state organisation and demonstrate his ability to lead the party through electoral contests without the same level of central intervention.
He will also be mindful of what happened in Bihar’s Bankipur bypoll, where the party lost a constituency that had been associated with its state leadership for decades. The seat, held by BJP state president Nitin Nabin and his family for nearly three decades, was won by Prashant Kishor.
For Adhikari, the Nandigram and Rejinagar contests will thus carry significance beyond their individual results. They will provide an early indication of how the BJP performs in Bengal under his leadership after taking over as chief minister.
The Emotive Core Of The Contest
The BJP’s choice of Hasirani Rath has added an emotional dimension to the campaign. Rath is the mother of Chandranath Rath, a close aide of Adhikari who was killed in May.
The BJP has highlighted the murder and the ongoing investigation as part of its campaign in the constituency. Rath’s candidature brings the killing of Adhikari’s aide directly into the electoral narrative, while allowing the BJP to frame the contest around issues of law and order and political violence.
The October 6 bypoll will therefore be watched not only for the result in Nandigram, but also for what it reveals about the BJP’s hold over Adhikari’s former constituency and the ability of the opposition to regroup after a series of unexpected developments.
Quick Answers
Ask News18Suvendu Adhikari won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the 2026 Assembly election, and after choosing to retain Bhabanipur, he vacated the Nandigram seat, triggering the October 6 bypoll.
Ask News18About the Author
Saurabh Verma is a Deputy News Editor at News18.com, specialising in Indian politics and breaking global news. With years of experience tracking election strategies, he decodes domestic issues for mil…Read More
September 18, 2026, 19:42 IST
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