Alipurduar: Factional infighting within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has come out in the open in Alipurduar district following the announcement of candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections, triggering protests and vandalism at the party’s district office.
The BJP on Monday declared candidates for four of the five Assembly constituencies in the district. According to the list, Paritosh Das has been fielded from Alipurduar, Dipak Barman from Falakata, Manoj Oraon from Kumargram and Bishal Lama from Kalchini. The candidate for the Madarihat constituency is yet to be announced.
Tensions escalated soon after Paritosh Das was named as the candidate for the Alipurduar Assembly seat, sparking strong resentment among a section of party workers and supporters. On Monday night, agitated workers staged protests outside the BJP’s district office and allegedly vandalised the premises.
In a dramatic turn of events, BJP district president Mithu Das was reportedly locked inside the party office by the protesting workers and confined there until around 1 am. The protesters demanded an immediate change of the party’s nominee for the Alipurduar constituency.
Expressing dissent, Prem Newar, president of Mandal No. 4, questioned the selection process. He alleged that Paritosh Das lacked familiarity with the party’s organisational structure and claimed that grassroots workers did not recognise him. Warning of further agitation, Newar said the unrest witnessed on Monday was “only a trailer” if the party leadership failed to reconsider its decision. The development drew sharp reactions from political rivals. The Trinamool Congress’s Alipurduar district president took a dig at the BJP, stating that the party had “vandalised its own office” and questioning the candidate’s acceptability. He pointed out that Das had previously lost a municipal election by over 600 votes, suggesting that internal dissatisfaction within the BJP was expected.
Following the incident, the BJP’s district leadership held a prolonged meeting on Tuesday to assess the situation and prevent further escalation.
Reacting to the controversy, BJP district president Mithu Das confirmed that the matter had been reported to the state leadership but refrained from further comment. Meanwhile, Paritosh Das sought to downplay the unrest, stating that such disagreements were not uncommon in politics. He expressed confidence that dissenting party workers would eventually unite and support his campaign.
The episode has exposed underlying divisions within the BJP’s district unit at a crucial time, raising questions about internal cohesion ahead of the election.