West Bengal polls: TMC sets in motion a generational shift; only 1 of 4 on candidates’ list a senior citizen
Times of India | 19 March 2026
KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress’s list of candidates for the assembly poll has only 25% nominees who are senior citizens, marking a significant deviation from the norm in a country where gerontocracy thrives in politics. In 2021, 42.4% of the party’s candidates were over 60.
The list, released on Tuesday, signals what party insiders described as a calibrated generational shift. Of the 291 candidates fielded, 219 are below the age of 60. Even within this group, nearly 45% are aged 50 or less. While 72 candi-dates are aged above 60, only 25 — about 9% — are over 70. In comparison, in 2021, only 167 Trinamool candidates (57.5%) were between 25 and 60 and 90 candidates (31%) were in the age range of 61 and 70.
The current shift reflects a prolonged internal debate led prominently by party national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, who has repeatedly argued for an informal age ceiling in politics. He has often suggested that barring exceptional figures, politicians should consider stepping back after 70. CM Mamata Banerjee, however, has maintained that experience and youth must coexist.
“The list appears to have translated this dual approach into electoral strategy,” a party senior said.
This year, among Trinamool’s younger candidates, four are below 30 while 38 are in the 3140 age group. The largest cohort of 89 candidates are in the 51-60 bracket, followed closely by 88 aged between 41 and 50.
Despite dropping 74 MLAs to make room for fresh faces, the party has retained a core group of seasoned netas, signalling a parallel emphasis on continuity. Among the seniormost are Samar Mukherjee (83), a four-time MLA from Malda, and minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay (82), contesting from Ballygunge.
Seniors have expectedly been fielded from key constituencies. Mamata Banerjee (70), seeking a fourth term from Bhowanipore, continues to anchor TMC’s poll campaign.
Other notable seniors include Arup Roy (70), a dominant figure in Howrah politics, Udayan Guha (70), a key strategist in north Bengal and Firhad Hakim and Jyotipriya Mallick, both in their early 60s. Party insiders say their retention is aimed at stabilising organisational depth and preserving grassroots networks in crucial strongholds even as younger candidates are brought into the fold.
Among Trinamool’s youngest entrants are Debangshu Bhattacharya (29), Madhuparna Thakur (27), Rituparna Adhya (28) and Rajib Biswas (29). Biswas is a medical professional who has quit his job to enter electoral politics — a move that underscores the party’s outreach to professionals and first-time entrants.
The dropping of veterans such as Abdul Karim Chowdhury (80), Sabitri Mitra (65), Manoranjan Byapari (63), Giasuddin Molla (70) and Asit Majumdar (68) reflects a willingness within the party to sideline long-serving figures in favour of renewal.
At the same time, Trinamool has made space for political legacy by giving tickets to children of several veterans. Shrreya Pandey, for example, has been fielded from Maniktala, a seat that her late father Sadhan Pane won a record eight times.
Other second-generation candidates include Sirsanya Bandyopadhyay (son of MP Kalyan Bandyopadhyay), Tirthankar Ghosh (son of Nirmal Ghosh), Vasundhara Goswami (daughter of Kshiti Goswami), Shubhankar Singh (son of Shankar Singh) and Sandipan Saha (son of Swarnakamal Saha). Notably, Subhrangshu Roy, son of late Mukul Roy and himself a former MLA, has not been renominated.