BJP candidate Krishnendu Mukherjee secured a decisive win in the Asansol Uttar seat on May 4, 2026, defeating TMC leader Moloy Ghatak by a margin of over 11,000 votes. Following the result, supporters reopened a Durga Temple in the region that, according to local residents, had remained locked for most of the year for more than ten years.
Local accounts claim that the temple had been shut since the rise of the TMC in 2011, allegedly due to threats originating from a nearby Muslim-majority area. Residents further stated that the temple was opened only during the Durga Puja festival period. Mukherjee had reportedly campaigned on the promise of ensuring daily access to the temple for devotees.
The BJP described the development as a symbolic end to what it termed appeasement politics in the region. However, independent verification of the alleged threats remains limited to local narratives, with no confirmed official record, underscoring the sensitivity of communal dynamics in the coal belt town.
The incident has placed Asansol once again at the center of political and social discourse, reflecting how electoral outcomes continue to influence religious and community spaces in the region.
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