Keshiary (ST) assembly election results 2026: BJP's Bhadra Hemram defeats sitting Trinamool MLA Paresh Murmu

In Keshiary assembly constituency, BJP's Bhadra Hemram defeated Trinamool's Ramjiban Mandi, the two-time sitting legislator.According to the Election Commission, Hemram (113,713) polled 15,887 more votes than Mandi (97,826).Keshiary (ST) in Paschim Medinipur was previously represented by Paresh Murmu of the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly. In 2021, he won 1,06,366 votes against BJP’s Sonali Murmu (91,036), a victory margin of 15,330 votes with about 50% versus 43% vote share. As a Scheduled Tribe–reserved, predominantly rural seat bordering Odisha, Keshiary’s core issues centre on Adivasi livelihoods: secure land rights, improvement of minor irrigation for paddy and vegetables, and better price realisation plus storage for small farmers. Road connectivity between forest‑fringe villages, local haats and Medinipur/Kharagpur, along with demand for more government health centres, hostels and secondary schools for ST students, are recurring concerns.Frequent elephant movement and forest‑related pressures in parts of this belt also make compensation for crop damage and eco‑development schemes politically salient. Politically, Keshiary was a CPI(M) bastion under Maheswar Murmu, who won six times from 1982 to 2006, before a gradual shift to TMC with Paresh Murmu’s victories in 2016 and 2021, signalling a realignment of tribal support. The constituency falls under the Medinipur Lok Sabha seat, now held by TMC’s June Malia, aligning Assembly and parliamentary representation.