Kudmi test continues for TMC in Jangalmahal; will new outreach work?
With ST status demand unresolved, the community’s sway across 30 seats could decide outcomes as TMC launches 60-day outreach drive
Amid a “No Vote to TMC” campaign by sections of the Kudmi community in Jangalmahal over their pending Schedule Tribe (ST) status demand, the ruling Trinamool Congress has launched a 60-day outreach drive that carries an implicit message to the aggrieved community.
However, the Kudmis, classified as Other Backward Classes (OBC) in West Bengal, are not the stated target of the new programme, which is framed as an outreach for Scheduled Caste (SC) and ST voters.
Yet, party insiders say the community remains central to the drive because of its demographic weight across the Jangalmahal region, spanning Purulia, Jhargram, Bankura and West Midnapore, and because it sees itself as socially and culturally aligned with tribal groups despite its OBC classification.
A dialogue with marginalised communities
The Tapashilir Sanglap (dialogue with the Scheduled Communities) campaign is not exclusionary despite being branded as an SC/ST outreach.
Also read: Bengal polls 2026: TMC rolls out 60-day SC/ST outreach
“This is a dialogue with marginalised communities. Kudmis are OBC in classification, but socially and culturally, they see themselves as tribal,” said a senior TMC functionary on condition of anonymity as he is not supposed to comment on the party’s internal strategy.
West Bengal has 16 ST-reserved seats in its 294-member assembly. Of these, five fall in the broader Jangalmahal belt. But analysts say focusing only on those five understates the Kudmis’ leverage.
Why Kudmis matter
The Kudmi community constitutes a major portion of voters in about 30 of the 42 Assembly segments in the Jangalmahal region, including those reserved for STs. In several constituencies, reserved and general alike, they are either the single largest bloc or among the top two communities, giving them decisive influence in closely fought contests.
“In Jangalmahal, Kudmis matter far beyond their official OBC classification,” said political commentator Nirmalya Banerjee. “Even in general seats, they can determine the outcome. So, any outreach to scheduled communities is also politically aimed at them.”
The “Tapashilir Sanglap” campaign will cover 84 SC/ST-dominated assembly seats across the state.
Outreach amid visible Kudmi discontent
Announcing the initiative in Kolkata on Monday (March 2), TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said party workers would go door to door highlighting welfare schemes and warning against what he described as threats to constitutional protections under the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Also read: Amit Shah vows to ‘remove infiltrators’ from Bengal if BJP wins
“In BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, atrocities against Scheduled communities would win gold, silver and bronze,” Abhishek said, citing National Crime Records Bureau data. He added that constitutional safeguards drafted by BR Ambedkar must be defended.
The outreach coincides with visible Kudmi discontent in Jangalmahal, a tribal-dominated region.
“At a meeting of the community last month, we decided not to vote for the TMC in the upcoming assembly elections because of the state government’s lack of sincerity in pursuing our demand for ST status with the Centre,” Ajit Mahato, adviser to the Adivasi Kudmi Samaj (AKS), told The Federal.
Ultimatum to BJP
At the same meeting, the community “issued an ultimatum” to the BJP, demanding that the Kudmali language be included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution to secure its constitutional recognition, preservation and promotion.
“If the BJP-led central government fails to do so before the elections, we will not vote for the BJP either,” Mahato added.
Community leaders estimate Kudmis constitute up to 65 per cent of Purulia’s population and roughly 40 per cent in Jhargram, besides holding significant sway in parts of Bankura and West Midnapore.
Their presence overlaps geographically with multiple ST-reserved seats, but more importantly, they are electorally pivotal across most of the region’s constituencies.
Simmering discontent
The Kudmi demand for ST status has simmered for years, erupting into rail blockades and protests over the years.
The state government led by Mamata Banerjee has repeatedly said it forwarded the community’s demand to the Centre, maintaining that final inclusion in the ST list rests with the Union government under constitutional procedure.
Also read: Bengal SIR under Maoist shadow in Jangalmahal as tribals reject EC exercise
The chief minister recently told the state assembly that her government supports communities seeking recognition but must follow established processes.
The state has also written to the Centre seeking recognition of Sarna and Sari religious codes for tribal communities and pushed for inclusion of Kurmali in the 8h Schedule.
Yet frustration remains palpable in parts of Jangalmahal.
Blame on both state and Centre
Mahato alleged that the state-run West Bengal Cultural Research Institute has not recognised the Kudmi as an indigenous tribe. He also accused the state government of failing to submit what he described as a comprehensive and accurate report to the Centre on the community’s claim.
Political ripples intensified after Rajesh Mahato, chief adviser of Kudmi Samaj, West Bengal, joined the BJP at a rally in Garbeta last week. ‘
The TMC campaign to be started from March 5 will deploy special vehicles manned by party workers, covering at least three locations daily in each targeted constituency.
They will distribute booklets highlighting welfare schemes such as Lakshmir Bhandar, which has increased monthly assistance to women from the SC and ST communities to Rs 1,700, and outline what the party describes as the risks posed by the BJP.
Welfare or recognition?
In villages across Purulia and Jhargram, Kudmi voters express mixed feelings. Some beneficiaries of state schemes acknowledge economic gains but draw a distinction between welfare and recognition.
Also read: Bengal SIR: Mamata seat Bhabanipur loses 47,000 voters; here’s why it is significant
“Lakshmir Bhandar helps families, no doubt,” said Ranjit Mahato, a Kudmi farmer in Jhargram district. “But our ST issue is about status and rights. That has not been resolved.”
“There is a strong anti-incumbency sentiment against the TMC in the Jangalmahal region, and I am not sure how much this outreach can counter it. The ongoing Kudmi unrest has only added to the challenges facing the ruling party,” said Sunil Soren, a senior member of the Adivasi Gaota, a community‑based tribal organisation.
For the TMC, which regained much of Jangalmahal in 2021 after the BJP’s surge in 2019, the party’s SC/ST outreach is a test of whether it can contain simmering resentment with welfare politics intersects.
