Apurbalal Majumdar

Apurbalal Majumdar (1925–2001) was an Indian politician. Initially a member of the Scheduled Castes Federation, he was later associated with the All India Forward Bloc. In the 1950s he emerged as a leader of Namasudra refugees from East Bengal. He was elected to the West Bengal Legislative Assembly seven times. He belonged to the Namasudra community. Majumdar went to school at the Barisal Zilla School, then studied at P.C. College in Bagerhat, the Krishnagar Government College and the University Law College. Between 1945 and 1948 Majumdar was the president of the Bengal Scheduled Castes Students Federation, and between 1945 and 1946 he was the vice president of the All India Scheduled Castes Students Federation. Per Prafulla K. Chakrabarti Majumdar was "virtually a one-man group. He had enormous influence over the Bettiah refugees". Majumdar represented the Namasudras on the Action Committee.

The Bettiah Satyagrah protest movement lasted for about a month. Majumdar negotiated a deal with the government , whereby the refugees would return to the Bettiah camp if paid two months arrear cash dole immediately, living conditions at the camp improved and arrangements for economic rehabilitation put in place.

Majumdar contested both the Uluberia North and Bagdah seats in the 1967 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, winning both. In Uluberia North he obtained 19,812 votes (36.35%). The by-election was won by All India Forward Bloc candidate K. Mondal.

Ahead of the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election Majumdar's former political mentor Jogendranath Mondal entered in the fray to contest Majumdar's Bagdah seat. Majumdar was the Deputy Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly during the period of 1969–1970, having been elected by the Legislative Assembly to the post on 6 March 1969.

Forward Bloc leader In 1969 he became the secretary of the West Bengal State Committee of the All India Forward Bloc. On 3 May 1971, Majumdar was elected Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.

Ahead of the 1972 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election there were differences within the All India Forward Bloc leadership in West Bengal on which alliances the party should seek. The Congress(R)-CPI front Progressive Democratic Alliance invited the party to join their seat-sharing arrangement, but in the end the All India Forward Bloc decided to enter a seat-sharing arrangement with the CPI(M)-led front. The Congress(R) decided not to field any candidate in Bagdah, thus indirectly supporting Majumdar's candidacy.

Majumdar was unanimously re-elected as the Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly after the 1972 election, at its inaugural session on 24 March 1972.

He became the president of the West Bengal Adibasi Seva Sangha in 1972, president of the Manabik Adhikar Sanrakshan Samiti in 1973, president of the governing body of the Dinabandhu Mahavidyalay in Bongaon in 1973 and president of the Medico-Psychological Research Society in Calcutta in 1974.

Majumdar lost the Bagdah seat in the 1977 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, standing as an independent candidate. He finished in second place with 24,966 votes (44.70%), losing the seat to the All India Forward Bloc candidate Kamalakshi Biswas.

Congress(I) politician Majumdar later joined the Congress Party. As of the 1980s, Majumdar was part of the Executive of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (I), becoming one of its vice presidents in August 1981.

He tried to regain the Bagdah seat in the 1982 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election standing as a Congress(I) candidate, again finishing in second place behind Biswas with 40,070 votes (48.53%). Majumdar contested the Nabadwip parliamentary seat in the 1984 Indian general election, coming in second place with 334,536 votes (48.99%).

Majumdar made a come-back to the West Bengal Legislative Assembly in the 1987 election, winning the Bagdah seat and obtaining 44,517 votes (49.16%).

He contested the Nabadwip parliamentary seat again in the 1991 Indian general election, finishing in second place with 351,797 votes (39.24%). Majumdar did not contest the 1991 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election.

Later years Majumdar would break ties with the Congress Party due to conflict with other leaders in the party. Reportedly he later joined the Trinamool Congress instead.