West Bengal polls 2026: Congress hopes to win back Matua community votes

A decimated Congress in Bengal is seeing a glimmer of hope in the recent positive signals from the Matua community, the state’s second-largest Scheduled Caste group and also the second-most sought-after vote bank after the Muslims.

Building on the recent interest shown by a section of the community in reconnecting with the grand old party, the Congress is eyeing a deeper engagement with the politically influential Matua community, which remains polarised between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress.

The party’s hope of gaining a potential foothold to begin rebuilding its eroded base was further strengthened by the success of its “Satyagraha” programme (a nonviolent protest) organised on Sunday (September 14) in Thakurnagar against political polarisation and division at Thakurbari Matua Dham, the biggest pilgrimage site of the community.

State Congress president Subhankar Sarkar attended the protest programme, marking the first visit by a Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee chief to the Matua heartland of Thakurnagar in nearly two decades.

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Matua representatives meet Congress leaders

The precursor to the programme was a series of meetings held between the community’s representatives and Congress leaders at both the state and national levels, Sarkar told The Federal.

A delegation of Matua representatives, led by a BJP functionary Tapan Haldar, met Rahul Gandhi during his “Vote Adhikar Yatra” in Bihar on August 30.

The community representatives also met Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, organisational general secretary KC Venugopal, and the party’s West Bengal observer Ghulam Ahmad Mir, according to Sarkar.

During his two-day visit to the state, Venugopal also met Sukriti Ranjan Biswas, a prominent leader of the All-India Matua Mahasangha.

Another prominent voice against the central government’s citizenship framework and a former CPI(M) leader Prasenjit Bose joined the Congress on Tuesday (September 16) in a clear indication that the Congress’s campaign to secure voting rights of the marginalised community is getting some traction in West Bengal.

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Fundamental issue of citizenship

“The Matua community is not happy with the way the BJP and the TMC are handling the fundamental issue of their citizenship,” Sarkar said. He added, “During the Congress regime, Matuas never faced any citizenship problem. They had voting rights and even held passports. Now, these parties (the TMC and the BJP) are first creating a problem and then pretending to solve it.”

He, however, did not divulge the details of the initiatives the Congress is planning for the community, given that the party is taking a cautious approach.

It is currently collecting opinions from the cross-section of the Matua community on their citizenship concerns and will soon form a committee to look into the issue, while continuing with its outreach drive.

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Rahul Gandhi likely to visit

Among the party’s upcoming programmes in the Matua hub is a mass prayer by its leaders at the Thakurbari Matua Dham, scheduled to take place after the conclusion of Durga Puja on October 2, according to party sources.

There is also a strong buzz within party circles about a possible visit by Rahul Gandhi to the state in the second week of October. The party is making an effort to organise a programme for Gandhi in the Matua belt during his likely visit.

“Wait and watch, many will visit,” Sarkar said briefly when asked about Rahul Gandhi’s possible visit to the community stronghold.

As per the tentative programme, the party’s Lok Sabha leader will visit minority-dominated Malda, the only district in the state to elect a Congress MP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Party candidate Isha Khan Chowdhury won from Malda South, the sole seat out of 42 that the Congress managed to secure.

At present, the party has no representation in the 294-member state assembly.

Meanwhile, the Congress has begun a public signature campaign in the state from Saturday (September 13) as part of its nationwide campaign, 'vote chor, gaddi chhod (vote thief, give up the power).’

Also Read: Bengal’s Matuas wait and watch, refuse to take CAA bait as poll battle hots up

Matuas’ political association with Congress

The Congress’s political association with the Matua community is not new.

Pramatha Ranjan Thakur, the great-grandson of the Matua sect founder Harichand Thakur, was elected to the Constituent Assembly in 1946 from Bengal with the support of the Congress party. He also won the Bengal Legislative Assembly elections in 1957 and 1962 as a Congress candidate and served as a minister.

With the latest outreach, the party is seeking to rebuild its ties with the community.

With around 15 million voters, the community is a decisive factor in at least 30 assembly seats and could influence the outcome in at least 50 more seats.