Madarihat bypoll: TMC attributes success to unified tea trade unions
Alipurduar: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) attributes its resounding success in the Madarihat by-election to the unification of tea garden trade unions under the Trinamool Cha Bagan Sramik Union (TCBSU). This strategic move strengthened its organisational base, leading to significant gains in tea garden-dominated regions.
Trinamool achieved a historic victory, taking the lead across all 24 tea gardens and 12 Gram Panchayats (GP) in the Constituency. The party secured 81 out of 100 booths in tea garden regions, leaving the BJP with just 19. Party leaders have hailed this result as a milestone in their growing influence in Madarihat.
Trinamool insiders attribute this success not only to the state government’s developmental initiatives but also to the unification of workers’ organisations. Over the past two years, internal conflicts within Trinamool’s trade unions have reduced significantly, enabling quicker decision-making and more coordinated campaigns.
Nakul Sonar, Chairman of TCBSU, emphasised the role of unification: “Every tea garden now has a single trade union aligned with the party. Over three years, we strengthened TCBSU, enabling us to campaign effectively and make quicker decisions. This unity was crucial to our success.”
Rajya Sabha MP and Trinamool Alipurduar district president, Prakash Chik Baraik, added: “We support tea garden workers year-round, with active units in every garden. This consistent presence has resulted in strong booth-level outcomes.”
The groundwork for this success began after Trinamool’s poor performance in the 2021 Assembly elections, where it lost the Madarihat seat to the BJP by 30,000 votes. At the time, multiple
Trinamool-affiliated trade unions in Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri often worked at odds with one another.
To address this, Ritabrata Banerjee, as INTTUC’s state president, spearheaded the “one industry, one union” policy. Months of effort led to the dissolution of factional unions and the formation of TCBSU. This unified approach minimised conflicts and allowed the party to campaign with focus and strategy, leading to a decisive victory.
