Rich but rejected: Bengal voters dump 7 of 10 richest candidates

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has scripted a historic victory in West Bengal, winning 206 seats and reducing the Trinamool Congress (TMC) to 81. But alongside the battle for power, another trend has stood out: money failed to guarantee victory. Jakir Hossain (TMC), the state's richest candidate, lost to BJP's Chitta Mukherjee.

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Seven of the state's 10 richest candidates have lost their contests, underlining that deep pockets did not translate into votes.

Leading the list was TMC's Jakir Hossain from Jangipur, with declared assets of over ₹133 crore. He lost to BJP's Chitta Mukherjee by 10,542 votes. 

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Close behind, TMC’s Goutam Mishra from Barjora, with assets exceeding ₹105 crore, was defeated by BJP’s Billeshwar Sinha by a margin of 41,310 votes.

BJP's own Palash Rana, among the richest with assets of over ₹104 crore, also failed to convert wealth into a win, losing Raidighi to TMC’s Tapas Mondal by 5,957 votes.

Among other high-profile defeats, TMC's Samir Chakraborty from Pandua, with ₹76 crore-plus assets, lost to BJP's Tusar Majumdar by 5,228 votes. Kabi Dutta of the TMC, who declared assets of ₹72 crore from Durgapur Paschim, was also defeated by the BJP's Lakshmi Chandra.

TMC's Somenath Shyam Ichini, with assets worth ₹34 crore from Jagatdal, lost to BJP's Rajesh Kumar by 20,909 votes. AISF's Abjal Ali Sha, with ₹32 crore-plus assets from Panskura Paschim, was defeated by BJP's Sintu Senapati by 32,567 votes.

Only three among the top 10 richest candidates managed to win. BJP's Dilip Saha from Nabagram (SC), with ₹43 crore in assets, won by 37,598 votes. 

TMC's Ahmed Javed Khan from Kasba, with ₹39 crore, secured victory by 20,974 votes, while Bayron Biswas from Sagardighi, with ₹33 crore, won by 34,260 votes.