The BJP on Sunday swept the fresh election in the Falta Assembly seat, followed by the CPM and the Congress, with the Trinamool Congress’s fourth spot in a former stronghold prompting pronouncements of the death of its “Diamond Harbour model”.
Winner Debangshu Panda’s tally of 149,666 votes came to around 71.2 per cent of the votes polled, giving him a victory margin of 109,021 over the CPM’s Sambhunath Kurmi, who won 40,645 votes or 19.34 per cent.
Congress candidate Abdur Razzak Molla won 10,084 votes, or 4.8 per cent, ahead of Trinamool’s 7,783 votes or 3.7 per cent — a staggering decline of over 85 percentage points from its tally (89.09 per cent) from the segment during the 2024 general election.
Trinamool can argue, however, that its tally is not a measure of its popularity citing how its candidate, “Pushpa” Jahangir Khan, had pulled out of the campaign and yet attracted some votes. However, Jahangir’s “withdrawal” itself represents a collapse of Trinamool’s clout in the constituency.
Jahangir had after the BJP’s ascension to power in Bengal declared he was withdrawing from the Falta by-election, but with the last date for withdrawals long passed, his name remained on the voting machines.
Falta is part of Trinamool No. 2 Abhishek Banerjee’s Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha seat, where Mamata Banerjee’s party had wielded near-total supremacy in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Abhishek had secured a lead of 168,372 from the Falta segment alone at the time amid Opposition allegations of intimidation, voter suppression and poll manipulation across the Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha seat.
The Assembly election in Falta was held on April 29 before the Election Commission ordered fresh polls following allegations of malpractices, intimidation and EVM tampering. The repoll was held on May 21.
With the Falta victory, the BJP’s tally in the 294-seat Assembly has risen to 208.
“The dubious Diamond Harbour model has turned out to be Trinamool’s defeat model. The chapter of rejection has just begun,” chief minister Suvendu Adhikari posted on X.
While Jahangir retreated from the race, Abhishek did not visit Falta after the May 4 declaration of the Assembly poll results, leaving a vacuum for the CPM to fill.
Political analysts believe a segment of demoralised Trinamool workers voted Left. The Falta outcome has revived discussions about a possible Left resurgence in Bengal. After drawing blanks in the 2021 Assembly elections and 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the Left won a single seat in the 2026 Assembly elections. “Today, Trinamool Congress melted like ice. Today we received recognition for standing beside the common people,” CPM state secretary Md Salim said.
Residents said Trinamool rule had been marked by an atmosphere of fear. “For the last two decades we were not allowed to vote freely,” an elderly villager alleged.
Abhishek questioned the credibility of the counting process and alleged “glaring inconsistencies” in the conduct of the May 21 polling. In a post on X, he wrote: “By 3.30 pm today all 21 rounds of counting were completed. On May 4, by the same time, only two to four rounds had taken place. The country deserves an explanation from the Election Commission of India.”
He attributed the defeat also to the alleged displacement of party workers following post-poll violence. “More than 1,000 workers from Falta have been forced to flee their homes in the last 10 days while the Election Commission continued to turn a blind eye. Party offices were vandalised in broad daylight even when the Model Code of Conduct was in force,” he said.
