Alok Sen, a senior BJP leader of the Dabgram-Fulbari Assembly seat, which is the constituency of state tourism minister Gautam Deb, will contest as an Independent from the seat after severing ties with the saffron camp in protest of the selection of the BJP candidate.

Veteran BJP leader Sen, who was also a district secretary of the BJP in Jalpaiguri, articulated his grievances here on Thursday. He said the decision made by the BJP to field Sikha Chatterjee from the seat had not gone down well with him and some other party old-timers.

“A few names, including my name, of probable candidates were sent to the state leadership for the Dabgram-Fulbari seat. But unfortunately, the leaders selected a former Trinamul leader. That is why I walked out of the party and will contest as an Independent,” said Sen, who had been with the BJP for over a decade.

According to party insiders, Sen’s departure would affect the BJP base in Dabgram-Fulbari area and can indirectly help incumbent Trinamul MLA Deb.

“He (Sen) has good number of followers in the area. It was because of him that the BJP could develop its base in Dabgram-Fulbari and managed to secure a lead of 86,000 votes in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from this Assembly segment,” said a source in BJP.

Sen, political observers pointed out, is the second veteran politician from Siliguri to leave his party in a matter of days over dissatisfaction with the party’s nominee.

In a similar move, Nantu Paul of Trinamul recently filed his nomination as an Independent from Siliguri. He had quit Trinamul following the party’s decision to field Omprakash Mishra as the candidate in Siliguri.