Humayun Kabir calls for Cong-JUP alliance to counter TMC

Humayun Kabir, MLA from Bharatpur Assembly constituency in Murshidabad and founder of the newly floated Janata Unnayan Party (JUP), on Tuesday proposed a joint electoral understanding with the Congress to defeat the ruling Trinamul Congress (TMC) in the 2026 Assembly elections.

Addressing a party programme at Gabgachi Jadupur in the English Bazar Assembly constituency, Kabir first criticised former MP Mausam Noor’s recent return to the Congress from the TMC. He then urged Mausam Noor’s brother, Maldah (Dakshin) MP Isha Khan Choudhury, along with senior Congress leader and former West Bengal PCC chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, to join hands with the JUP to take on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

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“Adhir Chowdhury, who will be visiting Malda shortly, regularly criticises both Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee. If he is serious about dislodging Mamata Banerjee from power, then he should join hands with us so that we can prevent her from becoming Chief Minister for a fourth consecutive term,” Kabir said.

The JUP leader also remarked that the Congress in Malda continues to project late ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury as a political icon, while failing to revive its organisational strength. He claimed that the Congress, which had fought the CPI-M for decades, lost its national stature after forging an ‘alliance’ with the CPI-M in the 2021 Assembly elections and eventually failed to win a single seat in Malda.

Referring again to Mausam Noor, Kabir said: “Another former MP who returned from the TMC is now claiming that the Congress will open its account in Malda in 2026.”

He further stated that discussions were ongoing with the CPI-M, which has already reached an understanding with a party floated by Abbas Siddiqui. Kabir alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led government had failed the Muslim community on key issues such as OBC recognition and Waqf matters. He also accused the state government of failing to protect the jobs of thousands of school teachers following the Supreme Court verdict.

“With ministers like Partha Chatterjee and Jyoti Priya Mallick behind bars on corruption charges, the TMC stands exposed. Four political parties can come together to fight the TMC unitedly,” Kabir added.