Why Kurmis in Bengal have drawn the line for Trinamool, BJP

Disillusioned by the “false promises” of the Union and state governments to grant them Schedu­led Tribe (ST) status, the Kurmi community has decided to field its own candidates in West Bengal for the impending Lok Sabha election. Their dominant presence in the four districts of Paschim Medinipur, Purulia, Jhargram and Bankura—collectively known as Jangalmahal—make them a deciding or important factor in polls. If they constitute 65 per cent of the popula­tion in Purulia, they are 42 per cent, 17 per cent and 18 per cent in Jhargram, Paschim Medinipur and Bankura, respectively. The decision is significant because members of the community voted en masse for the BJP in the 2019 general election, helping it sweep the Bankura, Bishnupur, Jhargram, Medinipur and Purulia seats for the first time, contributing significantly to the party’s tally of 18 out of the state’s 42 seats, and cementing its place as the chief opposition in Bengal.

Ajit Kumar Mahato, chief of the Adivasi Kurmi Samaj, tells india today that mem­bers of his community will contest in five LS seats—Purulia, Medinipur, Bankura, Balurghat and Malda Dakshin—as independent candidates; in Jhargram, they will support the Jharkhand People’s Party (JPP).

The Kurmis have been agitating for long for ST recognition—currently they are classified as OBC (Other Backward Class)—a demand on which both the BJP and the TMC have dragged their feet, they allege. “We have been tricked by the false promises of both governments, which is why we decided to fight for our own rights electorally,” says Ajit. In 2019, he adds, the BJP candidates had promised that, if voted to power, they would raise the issue in Parliament, which did not happen. How­ever, sources say the main hindrance to the Kurmis getting ST status is resista­nce from other tribes, especially the Santhals, who claim Kurmis are a part of Hindu society.

Any division in Kurmi support is expected to benefit the Trinamool Congress (TMC). “If the Kurmi candidate can create a rift in the community’s votes, the TMC will benefit,” admits a BJP leader. “We suspect fielding Kurmi candidates is part of the TMC’s game plan.” Ajit rejects this as a cons­piracy theory. “The TMC government arrested our workers during our agitation for ST status in 2023. There is no chance of an understanding with them,” he says. But even TMC vice-president Jay Prakash Majumdar acknowledges that the division in Kurmi votes will help his party. “The more anti-TMC votes are divided, the better for us,” he says. Leader of the Opposition and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari begs to differ. “It does not matter. All tribes along with the Kurmis are with us,” he tells india today. The saffron side has fielded sitting MP Jyotirmay Singh Mahato against the TMC’s Shantiram Mahato in Purulia and Pranat Tudu against the TMC’s Kalipada Soren in Jhargram.

To consolidate votes, Ajit has set up a Hitmitan Nata Joron Manch. In Kurmali—the language spoken by the Kurmis—it loosely translates to ‘a platform to bring together friends’.

However, the Kurmis themselves are a fractious lot. So, the Negachari Kurmi Samaj, another Kurmi group, has decided to field separate candidates from Purulia, Jhargram and Medinipur, after plans to contest the polls with the Adivasi Kurmi Samaj were scuttled due to differences between leaders. While Purulia is a general seat, Jhargram is reserved for STs. Since Kurmis are still not recognised as STs, the Samaj is supporting Suraj Singh Besra of the JPP. The Negachari group has fielded a candidate who has an ST certificate. A divided lot out to divide the vote, then?

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