Meet Nawsad Siddique, the lone non-BJP opposition MLA in West Bengal assembly: 'Mamata should pave way for yougsters'

West Bengal Elections: In the 2021 assembly polls in West Bengal, the incumbent Trinamool Congress government led by Mamata Banerjee won by a landslide, bagging 216 of the 294 seats in the assembly, defying exit polls that predicted a close race against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP won 77 seats becoming the official opposition party.

The remaining one seat was bagged by Nawsad Siddique, the Indian Secular Front (ISF) candidate in Bhangar Assembly constituency of the South 24 Parganas district. The ISF had then contested elections in alliance with the Congress and the Left.

Nawsad Siddique, 32, won in 2021, defeating TMC's Rezaul Karim by over 24,000 votes and becoming the only other opposition party, except the BJP, in the West Bengal legislative assembly.

In 2026, Nawsad Siddique is again contesting as an ISF candidate from Bhangar. The ISF is in alliance with the Left this time, as the Congress is contesting alone. Siddique is up against TMC's Saokat Molla this time. The ISF is contesting on 34 seats.

LiveMint travelled to Bhangar, around 40 kilometres from Kolkata, during Siddique’s campaign, where he was scheduled to address a rally in one of the constituency’s villages. As evening sets in, Siddique arrives in a convoy of SUV’s, himself standing atop a Mahindra Thar. Those present welcome the MLA with slogans in Bengali translating to ‘Bengal’s marginalised people’s voice, Pirzada Nowsad Siddique, we welcome you.”

“We want to tell Mamataji that she is too old now. She should let young people take charge of West Bengal now,” Siddique says before addressing the rally.

Who is Nawsad Siddqiue?

Born on 2 May 1993, Pirzada Mohammad Nawsad Siddique is the Chairman of the ISF. Nawsad is a descendant of Muhammad Abu Bakr Siddique, the first Pir of Furfura Sharif, which holds sway over a section of Bengali-speaking Muslims in the state.

Nawsad’s father, Ali Akbar Siddique, was the son of Pir Zulfiqar Ali, known as ‘Chhto Huzur’ of Furfura Sharif. He is the fourth generation of Furfura Sharif Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique, the founder. Nawsad's elder brother, Abbas Siddique, is the founder of the Indian Secular Front. In 2015, he obtained a master's degree from Aliah University in Kolkata.

“The condition of education, health and of farmers is deteriorating. You have failed people of Bengal. It’s about time you go,” Siddique said.

Ahead of the West Bengal assembly elections, Siddique had urged like-minded parties to come together and challenge the BJP and Trinamool Congress.

Before the 2021 elections in West Bengal, the ISF joined hands with bigger parties such as Congress and the Left Front and together they formed an alliance called the Sanjukta Morcha.

In 2025, Nawsad was detained during a protest in Kolkata after a clash broke out between party workers and the police. The situation turned violent when supporters of the ISF staged a protest over several issues, including voter list revisions and alleged harassment of migrants from West Bengal in BJP-ruled states.

Siddique says Muslims as well as Hindus have been targeted during the deletion of names in the Special Intensive Revision exercise. “This was done to benefit the BJP, who else?” he says.

Bhangar votes in the second phase of the West Bengal elections on 29 April.