Established in 1951, Gazole is one of the seven segments of the Maldaha Uttar Lok Sabha seat and covers the entire Gazole community development block. The 2018 proposal to make it a municipal town is still pending, which many feel is a punishment for Gazole's failure to elect the ruling Trinamool Congress. The constituency has so far voted in 15 Assembly elections, as it disappeared from the state’s electoral map in 1957 and 1962 before being revived ahead of the 1967 elections.
The Left dominated elections here, winning 10 times, including nine victories of the CPI(M), and one by the undivided CPI in the inaugural election of 1951. The Congress party has won this seat four times, while the BJP opened its account in 2021.
Sushil Chandra Roy of the Congress party broke the long sequence of seven CPI(M) victories that lasted from 1977 to 2006, when he defeated Govinda Mondal of the CPI(M) by 5,584 votes in 2011. The CPI(M) struck back in 2016 with Dipali Biswas defeating the sitting MLA Sushil Chandra Roy of the Trinamool Congress by 20,602 votes. The BJP, which had languished a distant third in the past two elections, after polling 5.26 per cent votes in 2011 and 14.51 per cent in 2016, emerged winner in 2021 with its candidate Chinmoy Deb Barman defeating Basanti Barman of the Trinamool Congress by a narrow margin of 1,798 votes.
The same churn and the BJP’s ascent are visible in the Lok Sabha polling in the Gazole Assembly segment. The Congress led the CPI(M) by 9,808 votes in 2009, the CPI(M) led the Trinamool Congress by 14,803 votes in 2014, the BJP surged to the top in 2019 with a massive lead of 41,171 votes over the Trinamool, and in 2024 the BJP again led the Trinamool by 38,871 votes.
Gazole had 279,524 registered voters in 2024, up from 267,096 in 2021, 253,772 in 2019, 233,833 in 2016 and 186,960 in 2011. Scheduled Castes form the most dominant group in this constituency, reserved for them with 37.36 per cent of the voters, Scheduled Tribes account for 19.94 per cent, and Muslims 23.80 per cent. It is predominantly rural seat with 96.61 per cent of voters in villages and only 3.39 per cent in urban localities. Voter turnout has declined steadily, standing at 86.64 per cent in 2011, 84.87 per cent in 2016, 83.01 per cent in 2019, 82.84 per cent in 2021 and 73.41 per cent in 2024.
Gazole lies in the northern Maldah district on the Barind plateau with slightly elevated terrain and lateritic soil. The Mahananda River flows to the east while smaller streams irrigate the fields. Agriculture is the backbone of the economy, with paddy, jute and mangoes grown widely, Maldah being famous for its mango orchards. Road connectivity is provided by National Highway 12, which passes through Gazole linking it to Raiganj and Siliguri in the north and Malda town in the south. Rail connectivity comes from Gazole railway station on the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri line, which connects the town to Malda, Kolkata and Siliguri. Malda town, the district headquarters, is 26 km south of Gazole, English Bazar, the subdivision headquarters, is also 26 km south, Kolkata the state capital is 345 km south, Raiganj in Uttar Dinajpur district is 45 km north, Balurghat in Dakshin Dinajpur district is 65 km west, Siliguri in Darjeeling district is 165 km north, Patna the Bihar capital is 295 km west, Kishanganj in Bihar is 95 km northwest, and Purnia in Bihar is 135 km northwest. The Bangladesh border lies about 40 km east of Gazole near Mahadipur, and the nearest Bangladeshi town is Rajshahi, about 55 km east across the border.
The BJP goes to the 2026 polls as the favourite to retain the seat, though it is expected to face tough competition from the Trinamool Congress. The BJP has occupied the top spot in the last three elections, but its victory margin in the 2021 Assembly polls was alarmingly low at 0.80 per cent. There is no indication yet that Gazole voters use different yardsticks while voting in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
Gazole is set to witness a fierce and close contest between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress, with the Left Front-Congress alliance not expected to revive enough from the margins to alter the outcome in the 2026 Assembly elections.
(Ajay Jha)
