West Bengal Assembly Elections: Nandigram is gearing up for voting in Phase 1 of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections. The Election Commission of India has released the list of candidates who’ll be contesting.
This constituency is part of Purba Medinipur in South West Bengal, and it’s one of 294 seats in the state Assembly. It’s a general seat, so anyone can run, but there’s a significant Scheduled Caste population here, about 17%, with a tiny fraction from the Scheduled Tribe community.
Nandigram has 2,68,378 voters, split pretty evenly between men and women. The area also has a pretty high literacy rate, up at 87.66%, according to the 2011 Census. People in Nandigram will cast their votes on Thursday, April 23, 2026. Counting happens about ten days later, on Monday, May 4.
Here’s the list of candidates fighting for the seat:
Pabitra Kar (TMC)
Suvendu Adhikari (BJP)
Sekh Jariatul Hossain (INC)
Ali Md Sabe Miraj Khan (AISF)
Sahidul Haque Mondal (AJUN)
Santi Gopal Giri (CPI)
Bimal Kumar Maity (SUCIC)
Sangita Chakraborty (IND)
Md Nurul Islam (IND)
Md Abi Ala (IND)
Sahalam Ali (IND)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)- Suvendu Adhikari
Suvendu Adhikari, the sitting MLA from Nandigram, is also the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly. In 2021, he made headlines by beating Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a tough fight. Once a prominent leader in Trinamool Congress (TMC), Adhikari jumped to the BJP in 2020 and quickly became one of their biggest names in Bengal. Now, in 2026, he’s running again, only this time, the spotlight and pressure are even higher.
All India Trinamool Congress (TMC)- Pabitra Kar
Pabitra Kar is TMC’s pick for Nandigram this election. He has a twist in his story: before rejoining TMC, he was a BJP leader and a close aide to Suvendu Adhikari. These two know each other well, turning the battle into a contest between old allies on opposite sides. Kar used to serve as a panchayat leader in Nandigram and helped shore up BJP’s presence at the grassroots level. Just before the elections, he switched back to TMC. With his local roots and insight into the BJP’s playbook, TMC hopes Kar will give Adhikari a run for his money.
Left Front / CPI(M)- Candidate: Not confirmed
There’s no clear or officially announced CPI(M) candidate for Nandigram in 2026—at least, nothing that’s made it into major news sources so far. Back in 2021, Minakshi Mukherjee ran for the Left from this seat. The Left Front is contesting seats across West Bengal, but when it comes to Nandigram, they’re keeping their cards close—or maybe still figuring things out.
