AJUP Chief Humayun Kabir Announces Retirement From Electoral Politics

Humayun Kabir, the Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) chief and विधायक, has announced that he is stepping away from electoral politics, even as the result of the Rejinagar assembly bypoll remains pending.

Kabir made the announcement while speaking to the media after being released from police custody following a confrontation during the bypoll process.

He broke down while speaking and said he was taking voluntary retirement from politics.

The announcement came before the counting of votes, which is scheduled for 9 October.

Kabir links political exit to Rejinagar poll

Kabir indicated that the political system and the treatment he had received had left him disillusioned.

He alleged that the election process in Rejinagar had not been fair and blamed the administration for the circumstances surrounding the poll.

He claimed that the BJP would win Rejinagar and said that the result could not be treated as a genuine public mandate.

Jagran reported that Kabir accused the BJP of using the administration to steal votes.

Kabir also said that politics had little meaning in a democratic system where it was not possible to fight against those in power.

His retirement announcement was therefore linked not only to his arrest but also to his wider allegations about the election process and the political system.

He apologised to the people of Naoda for his decision.

Kabir said he would call a meeting in Naoda after the election process was complete and apologise to the public before retiring from politics at the age of 64.

He also left open the possibility of resigning as the Naoda MLA.

Kabir said that if the people of Naoda expressed their opinion after a meeting, he would consider their decision.

He referred to a possible meeting involving either 1,000 or 10,000 people.

He said that if 60% of those attending told him that he should leave office because he no longer wanted to continue, he would accept their permission and resign as the Naoda विधायक.

Kabir described this as a promise to the people.

Condition involving Shubhendu Adhikari

Kabir also said he would not attend the assembly while Shubhendu Adhikari remained in the chief minister’s post.

He said he would apologise to the people of Naoda and would not go to the assembly if Adhikari continued as chief minister.

Another account reported that Kabir said he would not enter the assembly as long as Adhikari remained in office.

Kabir said he would continue trying to ensure that essential services and development work in his constituency continued because the people of Naoda had elected him to the assembly.

At the same time, he said he would not participate in the proceedings of the House while Adhikari held the chief minister’s post.

The statements combine three positions: a possible retirement from electoral politics, a possible resignation from the Naoda seat and a refusal to attend the assembly under the stated condition.

Kabir has not been reported in the source material as having already resigned from the Naoda seat.

His announcement was described as an indication of retirement in one account and as an announcement of voluntary retirement in another.

Arrest after confrontation outside party office

Kabir was taken into custody after a confrontation with police outside a party office following polling in Rejinagar.

The confrontation followed a sharp argument with police during the bypoll process.

He was released after 12 hours in custody, according to the report.

Another account described his detention as lasting approximately 12 hours.

The arrest became one of the most dramatic developments associated with polling in the constituency.

According to the reporting, Kabir was accused of using abusive language, attempting to influence voters and making provocative remarks.

The source material does not establish these allegations as facts.

It records them as allegations made in connection with the police action against him.

After his release, Kabir appeared before journalists in a markedly different manner from the aggressive leader seen outside the party office during the confrontation.

He spoke with tears in his eyes and attacked the police and the administration.

Kabir alleged that the electoral process in Rejinagar had not been conducted fairly.

He attributed the expected BJP victory to the role played by the administration during polling.

The police action became part of the political dispute around the bypoll, with Kabir alleging harassment and his opponents presenting the arrest differently.

Competing claims over the Rejinagar contest

Kabir claimed that the BJP would win Rejinagar, a constituency described in the source material as minority-dominated.

He also said that the result would not represent a genuine mandate because of alleged irregularities in the election process.

The BJP’s Samik Bhattacharya said that police had acted against people who, according to him, were attempting to create division between Hindus and Muslims and provoke riots.

Bhattacharya said the BJP would win both the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls.

Dilip Ghosh, a minister in the West Bengal government, also expressed confidence that the BJP would win both seats.

Ghosh said voters understood who could provide correct and better governance.

He said people would vote in the name of development and good governance.

The BJP’s Shankarao Sarkar was the party’s candidate in Rejinagar.

The other major candidates named in the source material were Muslim.

The candidates listed were Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi of the Congress, Rabiul Alam Chowdhury of the TMC and Gholam Nabi Azad of AJUP.

Rejinagar was described as a Muslim-majority seat.

The contest included the BJP, Congress, TMC, both TMC factions, CPI(M) and AJUP.

Kabir’s son, Gholam Nabi Azad, contested the seat as the AJUP candidate, according to the election report.

Another report referred to the AJUP candidate as Ghulam Nabi Azad.

A separate election update named Gulam Ali Ahmad as an AJUP candidate and said he believed the party’s contest was directly against the BJP.

The source material therefore contains more than one name in its references to AJUP candidates connected with the Rejinagar contest.

AJUP’s allegations during campaigning

Kabir alleged that police were arresting his workers and obstructing the party’s election campaign.

He said he had complained to the Election Commission about the matter.

Kabir also said he had withdrawn from campaigning because he could not campaign amid alleged police harassment.

He separately alleged that the police were creating trouble during voting and openly harassing ordinary voters.

He claimed that Muslim voters had faced oppression for the previous two months.

These claims were made by Kabir and are not independently established in the source material.

The AJUP candidate was quoted as saying that a fair election would have guaranteed the party a complete victory.

The candidate also alleged that police were carrying out planning against the party.

According to the candidate, AJUP’s direct contest was with the BJP rather than with any other party.

The candidate said that the public understood the situation and that the administration was afraid.

He also alleged that voters were being prevented from casting their ballots.

The claims from AJUP leaders added to a broader set of allegations raised during polling in the two West Bengal constituencies.

In Murshidabad, voters at booths 85 and 86 of Mirzapur Khagrupada Primary School alleged that some disruptive elements were preventing them from voting.

The voters said that antisocial elements were creating obstacles at the polling station and stopping them from exercising their franchise.

The source material does not state that these allegations were proved.

Turnout and the pending count

The polling figures reported for Rejinagar varied according to the time and account cited.

One election update recorded 80.07% voting in Rejinagar.

Another update said that nearly 79% of voters had exercised their franchise in the two West Bengal constituencies.

A further update recorded 78.42% voting in Rejinagar until 5 p.m.

The different figures refer to different reporting points and accounts in the source material.

The final result is due on 9 October.

Kabir’s announcement therefore came before voters’ verdict was formally declared.

He predicted a BJP victory but argued that such a result would not amount to a proper mandate.

The BJP leadership, meanwhile, claimed that the party would win the seat and rejected the political interpretation advanced by Kabir.

Samik Bhattacharya said the results would be surprising in a minority-majority area where the BJP was traditionally believed not to receive minority votes.

He said that the old pattern could change in this election.

The result will determine whether Kabir’s prediction, the BJP’s confidence and AJUP’s claims about its support are reflected in the count.

The source material does not provide the result itself.

From TMC leader to AJUP chief

Kabir had earlier been associated with the Trinamool Congress.

He later separated from the party and formed the Aam Janata Unnayan Party.

The change followed his announcement of a mosque project in Murshidabad based on the model of Ayodhya’s Babri Masjid.

Kabir announced the project in December 2025 in Beldanga, Murshidabad.

He laid the foundation on 6 December 2025.

The Trinamool Congress expelled him after the announcement and foundation-laying event.

Construction formally began in February 2026.

Kabir said the project would cost about Rs 300 crore.

He said the project would include the mosque as well as an Islamic hospital, a medical college and a park.

The source material does not provide an independent confirmation of the proposed cost or the progress of the construction.

The mosque announcement placed Kabir at the centre of political controversy before the bypoll.

His subsequent arrest, allegations against the election administration and announcement of retirement have kept him at the centre of the Rejinagar contest.

Kabir’s electoral history

Kabir won both the Naoda and Rejinagar seats in the previous assembly election.

He gave up the Rejinagar seat under the applicable rules, leading to the bypoll.

The vacancy made the Rejinagar contest necessary.

The source material also records Kabir’s claim that he had received 1,24,000 votes when he contested from the seat on 23 April 2026.

He said that he did not expect 93% voting in the bypoll.

Kabir said that the actual polling percentage would become clear only after the end of the process.

He also said that the BJP had no chance and that the party was afraid.

These statements were made before the figures and result cited in the election updates were available.

The result will now be watched against the background of Kabir’s earlier victories in both constituencies and the decision that created the Rejinagar vacancy.

The source material does not state whether Kabir’s retirement announcement changes his legal status as the Naoda MLA.

It records only his stated intention to retire and his conditional willingness to resign from the assembly seat.

The wider West Bengal bypoll

The Rejinagar poll was held along with the Nandigram assembly bypoll in West Bengal.

The two seats were among the constituencies that went to the polls as part of by-elections held across four states and one Union Territory.

The other contests were two assembly seats in Tamil Nadu, one assembly seat in Puducherry and the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam.

All the results are scheduled for 9 October.

The Nandigram and Rejinagar polls recorded substantial voting according to the figures reported in the source material.

One update recorded 80.89% voting in Nandigram and 80.07% in Rejinagar.

Another update said Nandigram recorded 79.39% voting and Rejinagar 78.42% until 5 p.m.

The Election Commission was quoted as saying that voting in the two seats was peaceful overall, with only a few untoward incidents reported.

The source material also records allegations of intimidation, obstruction and the removal of polling agents in connection with the wider West Bengal bypolls.

In Nandigram, Congress candidate Milan Pradhan alleged that every citizen should have the freedom to vote without fear.

He alleged that his polling agents had been forcibly taken away and threatened from the night before the poll.

He also alleged that their documents had been taken.

The source material presents these as allegations made by Pradhan.

The BJP’s state leadership said Nandigram was already a BJP seat and that its victory margin would increase.

Dilip Ghosh said a change could also be seen in Rejinagar.

He said the previous pattern of minority voters not supporting the BJP was changing in West Bengal.

The source material does not provide the final result of either West Bengal seat.

Changes around Nandigram

The Election Commission changed the officer in charge of Nandigram police station before polling.

Ajay Kumar Mishra was removed and Debashish Sarkar was appointed in his place.

Opposition parties had complained to the Election Commission that Mishra was close to the ruling party.

The Election Commission’s action followed those complaints, according to the report.

Mishra had been posted in Nandigram before the 2026 assembly election.

The Nandigram contest also involved changes in candidate positions.

There had been earlier discussion that Mamata Banerjee could contest from Nandigram.

She gave the ticket to Sanchita Pradhan, but Pradhan later withdrew from the election.

After that withdrawal, Banerjee had the option of supporting the Congress candidate.

The Congress fielded Milan Pradhan from the seat.

The source material says police arrested Milan Pradhan in an old case and that he was currently out on bail.

The BJP fielded the mother of Chandranath Rath, who had served as Shubhendu Adhikari’s personal assistant.

Chandranath Rath was killed on 6 May 2026, according to the source material.

The Nandigram election was therefore also viewed through the changes in candidate selection and the political shifts following the assembly election.

Political setting after the assembly election

The West Bengal bypolls were being held in a changed political environment after the assembly election.

The TMC had been removed from power in the May assembly election.

Mamata Banerjee had also lost her seat, according to the election report.

The source described the bypolls as the first in 15 years in which Banerjee was neither the chief minister, nor an MLA, nor a candidate.

The bypolls were not expected to determine the future of a government.

They were, however, expected to offer an indication of changing political equations on the ground and the parties’ organisational strength after the assembly election.

That wider setting has made the BJP’s claims in Nandigram and Rejinagar politically significant for the parties involved.

It has also given greater attention to Kabir’s claim that the BJP would win a minority-majority seat.

The source material does not establish whether the bypoll result will confirm or reject that claim.

Statements from Shubhendu Adhikari

Adhikari also commented on Kabir’s arrest during the election period.

He said that he too could be arrested.

Adhikari said he had left the booth and intervened.

He said he had cast his vote and would then go to a rented booth, rest for a while and travel to Kolkata.

He said that if he went to another booth, he would also be arrested because that was the rule.

These remarks were reported in the context of the police action against Kabir.

Kabir’s refusal to attend the assembly while Adhikari remained chief minister added a direct political condition to the retirement announcement.

The source material does not say whether Adhikari responded directly to Kabir’s decision to leave politics.

Polling disputes beyond Kabir’s arrest

The West Bengal election updates recorded several claims of irregularities and obstruction.

AJUP leaders alleged that police were working against the party.

Kabir alleged that police action was affecting his workers and campaign.

He also alleged that ordinary voters were being troubled.

Voters at two booths in Murshidabad alleged that disruptive elements were stopping them from voting.

Congress candidate Milan Pradhan alleged intimidation of polling agents in Nandigram.

Opposition parties had earlier alleged that the Nandigram police officer was close to the ruling party.

The Election Commission changed that officer before polling.

At the same time, the Election Commission was quoted as saying that voting was peaceful overall and that only a few untoward incidents had been reported.

The competing accounts show that allegations were made by several political actors, while the reported election assessment described the overall polling as peaceful.

The source material does not contain a final adjudication of those allegations.

Other bypolls and election arrangements

The wider round of by-elections also covered Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Assam.

The Tamil Nadu seats were Madurantakam and Dharapuram.

The Puducherry seat was Thattanchavady.

The Assam contest was for the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat.

One election report said the highest voting percentage was recorded in Madurantakam and the lowest in Nagaon.

The headline of that report mentioned 83.26% for Madurantakam, while its body recorded 86.26% for the same seat.

The body also recorded 80.30% voting in Dharapuram and 80.81% in Thattanchavady.

Nagaon recorded 76.20%, according to the same update.

The Tamil Nadu contests followed the resignations of AIADMK MLAs K. Maragatham Kumaravel and P. Sathyabama.

The two later joined TVK, according to the election report.

In Puducherry, Chief Minister N. Rangasamy had won two seats in April.

He retained Mangalam and resigned from Thattanchavady.

In Assam, Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned from the Lok Sabha in March.

He joined the BJP and later contested the Assam assembly election, leaving the Lok Sabha seat vacant.

The Election Commission said the voter list would continue to be updated until the last date for filing nominations, provided applications were received 10 days before the nomination deadline.

An Election Commission official said EVMs and VVPAT machines would be used at all polling stations.

The EPIC card remained the main identity document for voters.

Voters could also use an Aadhaar card, PAN card, driving licence, passport and other documents specified by the Election Commission.

These arrangements applied to the wider by-election process in which the West Bengal contests were held.

What Kabir’s announcement leaves unresolved

Kabir’s decision does not by itself settle the future of the Naoda assembly seat.

He said he would consider resigning if the people of Naoda gave him permission after a meeting.

He also said he would continue trying to ensure essential services and development work in the constituency.

The source material does not say whether any such meeting has taken place.

It does not say whether the people of Naoda have voted on his proposed resignation.

It also does not record a formal resignation from the assembly.

Kabir’s political retirement statement was made while the election result was still pending.

His prediction of a BJP victory remains a claim until the count is completed.

His allegation that the result would not represent a public mandate also remains his political position.

The BJP’s assertions about its prospects and the allegations made by AJUP leaders are likewise recorded as claims by the respective parties.

The count on 9 October is expected to provide the next verified development in the Rejinagar contest.

Until then, Kabir’s announcement marks a sharp turn for a politician who had won both Naoda and Rejinagar, left the TMC, formed AJUP and made the mosque project a central part of his political trajectory.

It also leaves the constituency waiting for two answers: whether the BJP’s claimed breakthrough will appear in the result and whether Kabir will follow his announcement with a formal political resignation.