Tapan (ST), a key tribal-reserved constituency in West Bengal’s Dakshin Dinajpur district, has seen a sharp shift in its electoral landscape in recent years. Part of the Balurghat Lok Sabha seat, it is one of 294 Assembly constituencies in the state.
In the 2021 Assembly election, the seat witnessed a closely fought contest, with BJP’s Budhrai Tudu emerging victorious. He secured 84,381 votes (45.29%), narrowly defeating TMC’s Kalpana Kisku, who polled 82,731 votes (44.41%). The margin of victory was just 1,650 votes, making it one of the tighter races in the region. RSP candidate Raghu Urow finished a distant third with 12,088 votes (6.49%), while others, including BSP, had a limited impact.
In 2016, the constituency had been won by TMC’s Bachchu Hansda, who secured 72,511 votes (42.78%), defeating RSP’s Raghu Urow. BJP was a distant third at the time, indicating a significant rise in its support by 2021.
The upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections will be held in two phases on April 23 and 29, with counting scheduled for May 4.