West Bengal: Independent candidate arrives on buffalo to file nomination in Purulia Lok Sabha seat
May 03, 2024
Purulia (West Bengal) [India], May 3 : Ajit Prasad Mahato, an independent candidate from Purulia, arrived on a buffalo to file his nomination for the Lok Sabha polls on Friday.
A large number of supporters walked with him as he proceeded to file his nomination papers. 
While speaking to ANI, he stated that he is contesting the election to fight for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the Kurmi community and to protect their language and culture.
"I filed my nomination. We are fighting for the ST status of the Kurmi community and the 'Sarna Dharam Code'...We also want to protect our language and culture," he told ANI.
Purulia constituency in West Bengal will go to polls in phase six of the Lok Sabha elections on May 25.
He is contesting against Jyotirmay Singh Mahato from the BJP and Shantiram Mahato from the TMC.
West Bengal, which sends 42 MPs, to Parliament, is voting in all seven phases. Voting for phases one and two was held on April 19 and April 26, respectively. Polling for the remaining parliamentary constituencies will be conducted on May 4, May 13, May 20, May 25, and June 1. The counting of votes will be done on June 4.
In most of the constituencies in the state, the main fight is between the ruling Trinamool Congress and BJP.
Though the TMC is part of the INDIA bloc, it does not have a seat-sharing arrangement with the other parties in the alliance, like Congress and the Left parties in the state.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the TMC won 34 seats in the state, while the BJP had to settle for just 2 seats. The CPI (M) won 2 seats, while the Congress bagged 4.
However, the BJP came up with a much-improved showing in the 2019 polls, winning 18 seats against the TMC's 22. The Congress's tally dropped to just 2 seats, while the Left scored a blank.
