LS polls: Tea plantation workers ‘hold key’ in North Bengal region

Tea plantation workers in North Bengal’s Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri Lok Sabha constituencies are set to wield significant influence in the upcoming Parliamentary elections. As political parties intensify efforts to sway these voters, their agendas and manifestoes are tailored to address the concerns of the tea-belt residents. Scheduled for the first phase of the 18th Parliamentary election on April 19, these constituencies are brimming with anticipation.

Alipurduar Lok Sabha Constituency boasts a voting population of 1,772,877 spread across 1,867 polling booths, while Jalpaiguri Lok Sabha constituency accommodates approximately 18 lakh voters, distributed among 2,164 polling booths. Notably, a substantial 65 per cent of these voters hail from tea plantation backgrounds or reside in tea plantation-dominated regions.

In the forthcoming parliamentary election, the tea plantation area voters are expected to wield considerable sway. Nakul Sonar, Chairman of the Trinamool Cha Bagan Sramik Union (TCBSU), criticized the BJP and the central government for allegedly misleading North Bengal’s populace, particularly those employed in tea plantations. He stated: “Despite Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman’s announcement of a Rs. 1000 crore allocation for tea industry development, no tangible benefits have materialized. However, under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership, wages for tea garden workers have reportedly surged from Rs 67 to Rs 250. Additionally, basic amenities such as hospitals, housing,

and drinking water have become more accessible.

We believe that these achievements will secure substantial support for the TMC in the upcoming elections.” On the contrary, Manoj Tigga, BJP candidate of Alipurduar Lok Sabha constituency, countered: “TMC tries to mislead the people as they have since 2011. All projects of the Central government are implemented in this region, but here is the twist that TMC does. The entire central government project is implemented, changing its name and logo. That’s the reason the tea belt of North Bengal will support BJP as before.”

In the 2019 polls, the BJP emerged victorious in both constituencies. John Barla secured a resounding victory in Alipurduar, defeating TMC’s Dasharath Tirkey by a staggering margin of 235,603 votes. Similarly, in Jalpaiguri, BJP’s Dr. Jayanta Roy triumphed over TMC’s Bijay Chandra Barman by approximately 180,000 votes.During the 2021 state Assembly elections, BJP managed to secure all 7 seats in Alipurduar, while TMC claimed victories in Jalpaiguri’s Jalpaiguri, Rajganj, and Mekliganj assemblies while BJP won in Dabgram-Fulbari, Maynaguri, and Dhupguri.

Subsequently, TMC regained Dhupguri in a by-election held in 2023.