In West Bengal's Malatipur constituency, Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate Abdur Rahim Boxi emerged victorious over Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) contender Ashish Das by a margin of 59,747 votes. Boxi secured a total of 1,04,123 votes, while Das managed only 43,346 votes.
Constituency Profile
Malatipur is a general assembly constituency located in the Malda district, falling under the Maldaha Uttar Lok Sabha seat. The constituency encompasses the Chanchal II community development block and several panchayats from the Ratua II block. It is entirely rural, with a significant Muslim population and a smaller Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) presence.
Political History
The seat has a colorful political history. Abdur Rahim Boxi has represented the area for multiple terms under different party labels. He won for the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) in 2011 and then narrowly lost to Congress's Alberuni Zulkarnain in 2016. In 2016, Congress's Alberuni Zulkarnain defeated Boxi by a narrow margin. By 2021, Boxi had switched to TMC and won the seat in a landslide, securing over 68 percent of the vote and a majority of over 91,000 votes. That extraordinary margin made Malatipur one of the most lopsided results in Malda in 2021.
2026 Contest
The 2026 contest saw Boxi again on the TMC ticket, while Congress fielded Mausam Noor, a prominent figure in north Bengal's Congress politics, to mount a challenge. This election is a significant test of the Congress revival narrative in this region.
