Gazole Assembly Election 2026: Profile and Candidate List

Constituency Overview & Geography

Gazole Assembly Constituency, numbered AC 44, is a Scheduled Caste (SC) reserved seat in Malda district. It is one of two SC-reserved seats in the district (the other being Maldaha, AC 50). Gazole sits in the northern reaches of the district, sharing proximity with South Dinajpur. The constituency covers the Gazole Community Development Block — a predominantly rural terrain of rice fields, mango orchards, and silk-producing households.

Gazole town is the administrative centre of the constituency — a small but commercially active town with a weekly market (haat) culture that has historically served as a focal point for rural economic activity. Silk weaving (Murshidabad and Gazole variety) is a notable cottage industry here. The constituency has no significant urban area, making it a purely agrarian seat.

Gazole Assembly Constituency falls under the Maldaha Uttar Lok Sabha constituency.

Voter & Demographic Profile

As per the 2011 Census, the population of Gazole constituency is approximately 3,20,000, essentially entirely rural. The SC population is structurally significant — as a reserved seat, SC voters are the plurality community. Namasudra and other SC communities, alongside a substantial Muslim minority in the panchayat areas, make Gazole a demographically layered seat.

The political implications: SC voters tend to vote differently from Muslim voters in Malda. In 2021, SC voters across Bengal shifted significantly toward BJP, which explains Gazole's BJP victory. The Muslim minority vote here typically flows between INC and TMC.

Approx. Registered Voters: ~2,40,000 (2024 roll) Polling Stations: ~270

Full Election History (2001–2021)

Gazole has been almost entirely a CPI(M) fortress since the Left Front's rise. The party won seven of the nine elections since 1977, building a near-impregnable panchayat network among SC communities and agricultural workers.

2001 & 2006 — Left Holds Firm CPI(M) won both elections convincingly, continuing its unbroken Left dominance in Gazole's SC-reserved territory. The 2006 election was particularly one-sided — the Left panchayat network was at its peak operational strength.

2011 — Left Survives the TMC Tide Like Habibpur, Gazole held for the Left in 2011. Even in the year of the great TMC sweep, CPI(M)'s roots in Gazole's SC community were deep enough to resist. Congress had some presence but was unable to convert it to a constituency-level win.

2016 — Left's Final Win in Gazole CPI(M) won once more in 2016 with Khitish Sarkar holding the seat, but the party's margin was shrinking. TMC was building a rural base, and BJP was beginning to mobilise SC voters through its Hindutva-infused identity narrative nationally.

2021 — BJP's Chinmoy Deb Barman Upsets the Left The 2021 election produced a dramatic result in Gazole:

Winning margin: 1,798 votes. It was BJP's narrowest win in Malda — a water-thin margin that reflects just how contested Gazole was. The three-way split between BJP, TMC, and CPI(M) kept the margin razor-thin.

2026 Candidate Profiles

BJP Candidate: Chinmoy Deb Barman — Defending a Fragile Margin Chinmoy Deb Barman is the sitting MLA returning to defend his paper-thin 1,798-vote win. His vulnerability is obvious: if TMC and CPI(M)/Left votes consolidate even partially, he could be dislodged. His campaign will be heavily reliant on the performance of central BJP welfare schemes and identity consolidation among SC voters.

TMC Candidate: Prasenjit Das — Building on the 2021 near-miss TMC has fielded Prasenjit Das — a candidate who may be building on the groundwork laid by the 2021 campaign. TMC's strategy is to absorb Left votes by positioning itself as the more credible welfare-delivering alternative. In Gazole, where the margin is under 2,000 votes, every booth matters.

Quick Reference Card — Gazole AC 44