In Sabang, Bhunia, a multi-term winner, lost, while in Dinhata, Udayan Guha was defeated. In Kolkata, BJP’s Purnima Chakraborty defeated state industry minister Shashi Panja, pointing to cracks even in urban bastions.
Updated: May 5, 2026 11:20 AM IST
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday scripted history by winning 202 seats, securing more than a two-thirds majority in the West Bengal Assembly polls. With this unprecedented performance, the BJP ended the TMC’s 15-year rule, decisively shifting the state’s ideological and political centre of gravity. The verdict came as a major blow not only to the Trinamool Congress but also to its supremo, Mamata Banerjee, who suffered a humiliating defeat in the prestigious Bhabanipur seat at the hands of BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, capping a stunning turnaround after initial trends appeared to favour her.
Now that the saffron camp has registered a magnificent victory, discussions have begun over who will become the first BJP Chief Minister in Bengal. While multiple names are doing the rounds, such as Dilip Ghosh, Agnimitra Paul, and Locket Chatterjee, it is Suvendu Adhikari who is most likely to become Mamata Banerjee’s successor as Bengal CM.
Amit Shah to meet Bengal BJP leadership:
Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to meet the top Bengal leadership in Delhi after the saffron camp’s unprecedented victory in Bengal. During the meeting, the name of the next CM is also expected to be decided. Sources tell India.com that Suvendu Adhikari might travel to Delhi on Tuesday evening.
Amit Shah on Monday hailed the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) performance in the West Bengal Assembly elections as a “historic win” and a “massive victory”. “This historic victory for the BJP in Bengal is the result of the sacrifices, struggles, and martyrdom of our countless workers. It is a triumph of the patience of those families who, even while enduring violence, never abandoned the saffron flag. In this arduous journey of the BJP from zero to a resounding majority today, I bow to all those workers who offered their lives, endured violence, suffered tortures, and yet never wavered from the path of ideology—and to their families. The people of Bengal have paid tribute to all those martyred BJP workers through this resounding majority,” he wrote.
Oath Taking Likely Before THIS Date:
The oath-taking ceremony of the next West Bengal chief minister is likely to be held before May 10. It is important to note that Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti falls on May 9, and the party might choose this day for the event. However, there has been no confirmation yet in this regard.
TMC and its scale of setback
The scale of the setback was reflected in the fortunes of senior TMC leaders. At least 20 ministers were defeated, including Bratya Basu, Manas Ranjan Bhunia, Shashi Panja and Chandrima Bhattacharya. In Sabang, Bhunia, a multi-term winner, lost, while in Dinhata, Udayan Guha was defeated. In Kolkata, BJP’s Purnima Chakraborty defeated state industry minister Shashi Panja, pointing to cracks even in urban bastions.
For a party that had built its dominance on welfare delivery, centralised authority and booth-level control, the erosion appeared simultaneous across organisational layers. In a dramatic, high-stakes contest that mirrored the political theatre of Nandigram five years ago, Adhikari defeated Banerjee in Bhabanipur by 15,105 votes after all 20 rounds of counting, according to Election Commission data.
“I thank the people of Bhabanipur for voting for me and ensuring a margin of over 15,000 votes,” Adhikari said after securing victory and collecting his winning certificate.
