West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 | Tea, timber and tribals: The fight for north Bengal’s Dooars

Alipuduar: Right in the middle of the courtyard leading to the Trinamool Congress (TMC) office in Alipurduar stands a Kali temple and a Shivaling. Further up, a press conference room hums with activity as party Rajya Sabha MP Prakash Chik Baraik addresses the media, announcing the induction of a local BJP leader into the TMC.

“Mamata Didi has done tremendous work for the welfare of the tribal community,” he says, rolling out a long list of schemes for tea garden workers, especially in the Dooars region of north Bengal.

The Dooars, often described as the gateway to the eastern Himalayas, are vast alluvial plains stretching over 300 km along the India-Bhutan border. Interlaced with snow-fed rivers, including the Teesta rushing down a steep gradient, the plains across Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and parts of Cooch Behar are wrapped in dense forests and offer excellent climatic conditions for tea cultivation.

While tea garden owners typically live in Siliguri or Kolkata, the labourers, mostly tribals, reside within the estates. They form one of the most influential vote banks in this part of Bengal.

If timber and tea define the economy of these plains, the tribal population holds the key to political power.

The fight for over two dozen Assembly segments, thus, is about getting the tribal tea garden voters on board.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP did extremely well in the region, winning seven of eight seats in north Bengal. Its dominance was challenged by the TMC in 2021, whittling down BJP's lead in several segments and won three constituencies in Jalpaiguri and two in Cooch Behar. In Alipurduar, however, Mamata Banerjee’s party faced a complete rout.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the TMC was able to snatch Cooch Behar from the BJP with its candidate defeating former Union minister Nishit Parmanik.

One of the key architects of the Trinamool’s north Bengal strategy has been former Left leader Ritabrata Banerjee, who entered the Rajya Sabha at the age of 34. Expelled from the CPM, he later joined the TMC’s trade union wing and was tasked with working among tea garden workers in north Bengal. Now a TMC MP, Banerjee is also contesting the Assembly polls from a seat in Howrah district.

As she tried to make inroads in the region, the Mamata government launched a string of welfare schemes for tea garden workers, including cash handouts, land rights for housing, school buses to ferry their children, and financial assistance for the sick and laid-off.

The nomination of 44-year-old Prakash Chik Baraik to the Rajya Sabha by the Trinamool last year was done in the same vein. Former Alipurduar MP and Union minister John Barla also joined the TMC ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

To do well in Bengal, the BJP needs to defend its stronghold in the northern parts of the state. The saffron party has sought to import local leaders from other outfits to fill the void. 

At a roadside shop near Mal Bazaar, Sukra Munda sips tea with his supporters. The former TMC MLA, elected in 2016, is now contesting on a BJP ticket from the Mal Assembly seat.

“The campaign is running smoothly. There were no SIR-related issues here. The entire process, in a way, helped sanitise the electoral rolls,” Munda says.

President Droupadi Murmu addressed the International Santal Conference in north Bengal in March, and expressed displeasure with the state government over an alleged lack of protocol. Prime Minister Narendra Modi later raised the issue in his campaign speeches.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the President of playing politics at the BJP’s behest. Two weeks later, she was in Alipurduar, formally launching her party’s bid for a fourth consecutive term in office.