Kolkata, Mar 17 (PTI) In one of its biggest candidate reshuffles in recent elections, the ruling TMC dropped 74 sitting MLAs, nearly a third of its legislative strength, while announcing candidates for 291 of the 294 West Bengal assembly seats on Tuesday, signalling a calibrated anti-incumbency strategy as it seeks a fourth straight term.
The candidate list, unveiled by Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, sets the stage for a renewed high-voltage electoral confrontation with the BJP, including a direct face-off in Bhabanipur where the CM will defend her seat against Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, rekindling a rivalry that played out in Nandigram during the 2021 assembly polls.
The candidate list reflects what party insiders describe as a “controlled churn” strategy, balancing generational change with organisational continuity as the TMC attempts to counter accumulated anti-incumbency after nearly three terms in power while confronting an aggressive campaign by the BJP.
Announcing the candidates from her Kalighat residence, Banerjee said the party would contest 291 seats while leaving the three Darjeeling Hills constituencies to ally Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha led by Anit Thapa.
“We will contest 291 seats and win more than 226,” Banerjee asserted, flanked by party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and state president Subrata Bakshi.
Of the 224 MLAs, the party retained 135 (around 60 per cent), shifted 15 to different seats, and dropped 74, suggesting an effort by the leadership to neutralise local anti-incumbency while preserving its booth-level organisational network.
The reshuffle came despite TMC’s commanding mandate in the 2021 assembly election when it won 215 of the 294 seats, later raising its tally to 225 through defections and bypoll victories.
“The TMC is trying to signal renewal while retaining its organisational spine. Dropping about a third of its MLAs allows the party to address local dissatisfaction, while keeping a majority ensures that the booth-level structure, still its strongest electoral asset, remains intact,” a political analyst said.
The Bhabanipur contest is expected to emerge as one of the defining battles, with Banerjee once again taking on Adhikari, who defeated her in Nandigram by a narrow margin in 2021 despite the TMC sweeping the state.
Several senior ministers — Firhad Hakim, Arup Biswas and Chandrima Bhattacharya — have been renominated from their existing constituencies.
The list introduced a mix of younger leaders, professionals and public personalities, though the overall emphasis remains on organisation — strong candidates rather than celebrity appeal.
Olympian and Asian Games gold medallist Swapna Barman has been fielded from Rajganj, while former cricketer Shib Shankar Pal has been nominated from Tufanganj. Actor-politician Soham Chakraborty has been shifted to Tehatta, and party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh will make his assembly poll debut from Beliaghata.
Among the prominent exclusions from the list are Barasat MLA Chiranjeet Chakraborty, Behala West legislator Partha Chatterjee and Beliaghata MLA Paresh Pal.
The party also included younger faces like Shreya Pandey from Maniktala and Sirsan Banerjee, son of TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee, from Uttarpara.
Data released by the TMC alongside the candidate list reveals a carefully structured social and demographic coalition.
Of the 291 candidates, 239 are men (82 per cent) and 52 women (18 per cent). Community representation remains broadly aligned with the TMC’s traditional electoral coalition: 149 candidates from General and OBC communities (51 per cent), 78 Scheduled Castes (27 per cent), 17 Scheduled Tribes (6 per cent) and 47 minorities (16 per cent).
Eleven SC/ST candidates have also been fielded in non-reserved seats, a move seen by observers as an attempt to expand the party’s social outreach beyond constitutionally reserved constituencies.
The age profile of the candidate list also points to a measured generational shift rather than a sweeping youth push. While four candidates are below 31 years of age and 38 fall in the 31-40 years bracket, the largest cohort comprises leaders aged between 51 and 60 (89 candidates), followed closely by 41-50 years (88 nominees), indicating that the TMC continues to rely heavily on middle-aged leaders with established local networks.
A senior TMC leader said the leadership had deliberately prioritised candidates with “ground connect and organisational credibility.” “The emphasis was on those who can run booths, manage workers and mobilise voters. Elections in Bengal are organisational battles, and the list reflects that reality,” he said.
The party has also attempted to recalibrate local equations in several politically sensitive constituencies.
In Nandigram, a seat that carries immense symbolic weight, the TMC has fielded Pabitra Kar, a former BJP-linked panchayat leader who recently returned to the party, in a move aimed at consolidating local networks.
Elsewhere, the party has retained strong district-level figures across politically crucial districts such as Birbhum, North 24 Parganas and South Bengal’s rural belt, areas that together constitute the backbone of the TMC’s electoral machinery.
The list came amid a controversy over the SIR, which witnessed large-scale names deletions and under scrutiny voters.
The elections to the 294-member assembly will be held on April 23 and 29. PTI PNT/SUS ACD PNT NN
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