Calcutta HC orders Bengal govt to let Congress candidate Milan Pradhan contest Nandigram bypoll
Synopsis
Hours after Mamata Banerjee's TMC faction pledged support to the Congress in Nandigram, the party's candidate Milan Pradhan was arrested in a 2007 murder case. Now, the Calcutta High Court has signalled interim bail and ordered the West Bengal government to let him contest the 6 October bypoll — while the state rushes to the Division Bench to challenge that very order. The legal clock is ticking against the ballot deadline.
Key Takeaways
The Calcutta High Court directed the West Bengal government on 24 September to allow Congress candidate Milan Pradhan to contest the Nandigram Assembly bypoll on equal terms.
Justice Tirthankar Ghosh signalled interim bail for Pradhan in a 2007 murder case ; final bail order expected after a hearing at 4 pm on 25 September .
A second bench headed by Justice Saugata Bhattacharya barred state police from filing new cases against Pradhan until 12 October .
The West Bengal government has challenged the single-judge order before Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge's Division Bench, with hearing set for Friday .
Pradhan was arrested on 18 September , hours after Mamata Banerjee announced TMC support for him in Nandigram.
The Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls are scheduled for 6 October , with results on 9 October .
The Calcutta High Court on Thursday, 24 September 2026, directed the West Bengal government to allow Milan Pradhan, the Indian National Congress candidate for the Nandigram Assembly bypoll in East Midnapore district, to contest the election on equal terms with all other candidates. The order came from a single-judge bench presided over by Justice Tirthankar Ghosh, marking a significant legal development ahead of the bypoll scheduled for 6 October.
What the Court Said
Justice Ghosh made a preliminary observation that his bench would be granting interim bail to Pradhan in connection with a 2007 murder case. 'I am granting him interim bail. Let him participate in the bypoll. The rest will depend on the fate of the case,' Justice Ghosh said. He clarified that the final decision on interim bail would follow a hearing scheduled for 4 pm on Friday, 25 September.
Pradhan's Legal Custody Status
Milan Pradhan is currently in judicial custody in two separate cases, both following orders of district courts in West Bengal. In the 2007 murder case, he was remanded in custody until 3 October, while in a second case he was sent to jail until 5 October. He had approached Justice Ghosh's bench seeking bail in both cases on Wednesday, 23 September, and the matter came up for hearing on Thursday afternoon.
Earlier on Thursday, a separate single-judge bench headed by Justice Saugata Bhattacharya barred state police from booking Pradhan or taking any further action against him in any new case until 12 October — adding a second layer of judicial protection as the bypoll draws near.
State Government Challenges the Order
The West Bengal government moved swiftly to contest the single-judge order, approaching the Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court headed by Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge. That challenge is slated for hearing at the Chief Justice's bench on Friday, setting up a direct legal confrontation between the court's original order and the state's position before a higher bench.
Political Background: Arrest, Mamata, and Nandigram
Pradhan was arrested on 18 September, just hours after former West Bengal Chief Minister and All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Mamata Banerjee announced that her faction would back the Congress candidate in Nandigram. Banerjee's announcement followed the withdrawal of her faction's own candidate, Sanchita Dey Pradhan.
The arrest was linked to an old murder case registered in 2007 during the anti-land acquisition movement at Nandigram under the then Left Front government led by the late Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. Critics argue the timing of the arrest — within hours of a high-profile political realignment — raises questions about the administration's neutrality. The state has not publicly addressed the timing.
What Happens Next
The Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly bypolls are scheduled for 6 October, with results to be declared on 9 October. The outcome of Friday's hearings — both on the final interim bail order and the state's challenge before the Division Bench — will be decisive in determining whether Pradhan can actively campaign. With less than two weeks to polling day, every judicial development carries direct electoral consequence.
Point of View
And the courts appear to be reading it similarly. Two separate benches intervening on the same day signals judicial discomfort with the state's conduct. The Division Bench challenge is now the decisive battleground: if the Chief Justice's bench upholds the single-judge order, the state will have handed the opposition a potent narrative of administrative overreach just days before polling. This bypoll was already a test of the TMC-Congress equation in Bengal; the legal drama has turned it into a referendum on institutional neutrality too.
NationPress
24 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did the Calcutta High Court order regarding the Nandigram bypoll?
A single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court presided over by Justice Tirthankar Ghosh directed the West Bengal government on 24 September to allow Congress candidate Milan Pradhan to contest the Nandigram Assembly bypoll like any other candidate. The judge also signalled interim bail for Pradhan in a 2007 murder case, with a final order expected after a Friday hearing.
Why was Milan Pradhan arrested?
Milan Pradhan was arrested on 18 September in connection with a 2007 murder case registered during the anti-land acquisition movement at Nandigram under the then Left Front government. He was also sent to judicial custody in a second separate case, with remand dates set in October.
What is the significance of the timing of Pradhan's arrest?
Pradhan was arrested just hours after Mamata Banerjee announced that her TMC faction would support him as the Congress candidate in Nandigram, raising questions — which critics have voiced openly — about whether the arrest was politically motivated. The state government has not publicly addressed the timing.
When are the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls scheduled?
Both the Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly bypolls in West Bengal are scheduled for 6 October, with results to be declared on 9 October.
What legal challenge has the West Bengal government filed?
The West Bengal government has moved the Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court, headed by Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge, challenging the single-judge order that directed it to let Pradhan contest. The Division Bench hearing is scheduled for Friday, 25 September.
