Congress president and candidate for Berhampore assembly constituency Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury ahead of the Murshidabad district assembly elections on April 5, 2026. | Photo credit: PTI
Congress veteran Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s campaign for West Bengal’s Berhampore Assembly seat faced repeated disruptions from Trinamool Congress supporters over the weekend. On Sunday (April 5, 2026), protesters hoisted the Trinamool flag and shouted slogans at the five-time former Congress MP until central forces intervened to bring the situation under control.
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He also faced opposition from ruling party workers while campaigning in Berhampore town on Saturday (April 4, 2026) but insisted that such protests would not deter him from reaching out to voters.
“We are carrying out election campaign programs every day. All programs are being done with the permission and knowledge of the Election Commission, yet the Trinamool miscreants are repeatedly trying to obstruct them. We will not stop – we will do it tonight and tomorrow too,” Mr Chowdhury said on Saturday (April 4, 2026).
This Assembly election is a prestigious battle for Congress leader. Until a few years ago, his influence was felt throughout the Murshidabad district and he served as the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha for five years, from 2019 to 2024. However, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he lost the Berhampore Lok Sabha seat to cricketer-turned-Trinamool politician Yusuf Pathan by a margin of 70 votes.
A return to the roots of the Congress
Also in the adjoining Malda district, Congress president Mausam Benazir Noor is challenging the Trinamool Congress, which she left earlier in the year. Ms. Noor, who was nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the TMC, returned to her Congress roots and is now contesting the assembly elections from the Malatipur seat.
Ms. Noor is the niece of former Union minister and veteran ABA Congress leader Ghani Khan Chowdhury, whose family still controls Malda. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, her nephew Isha Khan Chowdhury was elected from the Malda Dakshin seat, defeating both the Trinamool and the BJP.
‘He took everything and ran’
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who held three public meetings in Malda, targeted Ms Noor on Saturday (April 4, 2026).
“Since Malda does not have a (All India Trinamool Congress) AITC representative, we sent a lady from Malda to the Rajya Sabha. She resigned a month ago. We also gave her a ticket to the Lok Sabha. I have no problem with her joining another party, but you should not vote for her party. People like her took everything from the AITC to fight when they ran away as Trinamool president.
Muslim-dominated constituencies
Although the strength of the Congress has been significantly weakened in the last few years, the party remains a formidable force in its previous strongholds of Malda and Murshidabad. While Murshidabad, with its 22 Assembly seats, has a Muslim population of 70%, Muslims form more than half the population in Malda, which sends 12 legislators to the State Assembly. In 2021, the TMC won 28 assembly seats in these two districts, while the BJP won the remaining six.
Now that Mr. Chowdhury and Ms. Noor are trying to revive the Congress’ electoral fortunes in the region, the ruling party is facing the heat. Although the Congress has not entered into any alliance with the Left Front this time, the party still has an influence on the voters of the region. Suspended Trinamool Congress MLA Humayun Kabir’s Aam Janata Unnayan Party has also fielded candidates in the district, turning it into a multi-polar contest.
Published – 05 Apr 2026 20:54 IST
