News Mania / Piyal Chatterjee / 9th October 2024
The Bharatiya Janata Party is now the opposition party in the Bengal state assembly, however it is quite likely that they will lose that position in the 2026 election. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost the previous assembly election in Bengal in 2021, winning only 77 seats against the Trinamool Congress’ 213 seats. This year’s parliamentary elections saw them lose even more ground. As opposed to 18 seats in 2019, the BJP only managed to win 12 seats.
At the top, there’s conflict between the new turncoats and the veteran members, particularly over ticket distribution. Dilip Ghosh was forced to run from the Bardhaman-Durgapur seat; he had previously won from Medinipur. This led to his defeat, and the BJP even lost the seat in Medinipur.
Bengal’s main opposition party has stayed mostly out of the media in light of the current situation, where people are protesting against the rape and murder of a 31-year-old woman doctor at Kolkata’s R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. Some BJP leaders, such Locket Chatterjee and Agnimitra Paul, have staged protests in front of police stations, but they have not received public backing. Leaders and activists of the BJP’s women wing, Paul and Chatterjee, told reporters that they wish to “purify” the police because certain officers are linked to the crime. But whenever BJP leaders like Suvendu Adhikari and others have attempted to join the R.G. Kar protestors, they have encountered calls to “go back.”
The Communist Party of India (Marxist), whose cadres were at least not sent back, has emerged as the primary opposition party in Bengal as a result of this void. They raised their party flags and joined the demonstrators in their march. Prominent members of the CPI(M) have expressed their outspoken disapproval of the horrific crimes that the medical college administrations in Bengal have committed. To far, the CPI(M) has organized the majority of public rallies held outside of Kolkata. The major demonstration is still currently being spearheaded by the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front. It has come as a surprise that the right-wing student union Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad will rarely be involved in them. Rather, the country’s focus has been drawn to the Minakshi Mukherjee-led DYFI in terms of standing in solidarity with the junior doctors.
In spite of their failure to win any seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, CPI(M) has been often accused of splitting the Hindu electorate in favor of the TMC. Top contenders in Bengal’s political scene, the BJP and TMC, consider a renewed and revitalized CPI(M) as a common opponent. While a full resurgence in 2026 is an unlikely goal, the party can still manage to hold the opposition seat.In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the CPI(M) employed a policy of fielding a healthy mix of young and old candidates. This garnered attention. Furthermore, political pundits countered that Bengalis are eager to keep the state free of a TMC-BJP duopoly.
Even after ten years in the state, the BJP hasn’t been able to win over Bengalis. The urban Bengali bhadralok hate the TMC’s corrupt practices and support the reformist BJP. But the countryside is Mamata Banerjee’s stronghold. Approximately 70% of Bengal’s population, according to the 2011 Census, reside in rural areas. In 2024, the TMC won all of south Bengal, but the BJP managed to hold onto power in the state’s northern region. Meanwhile, TMC is in charge of the majority of zilla parishads and 35,000 gram panchayats.
Even after ten years in the state, the BJP hasn’t been able to win over Bengalis. The urban Bengali bhadralok hate the TMC’s corrupt practices and support the reformist BJP. But the countryside is Mamata Banerjee’s stronghold. Approximately 70% of Bengal’s population, according to the 2011 Census, reside in rural areas. In 2024, the TMC won all of south Bengal, but the BJP managed to hold onto power in the state’s northern region. Meanwhile, TMC is in charge of the majority of zilla parishads and 35,000 gram panchayats.
The highest leadership inside the BJP is a borrowed one. Suvendu Adhikari, the head of the opposition in the state assembly today, was Mamata Banerjee’s right-hand man in the past. Within the political community, there were rumors that he quit the TMC because Banerjee preferred her nephew to take over. In actuality, though, Adhikari was in the CBI’s notice for the Narada case for a considerable amount of time, but no action was taken by central agencies. Many prominent figures, such as TMC mainstay Mukul Roy, joined the BJP but then joined the TMC again once their identities were cleared of any involvement in various frauds. The BJP has been fundamentally undermined by this.
The BJP has not had much luck in recent times in winning over MLAs or MPs from the TMC. In March 2024, Tapas Roy was its most recent. It has also failed to make any impact on the TMC camp despite such extensive demonstrations. Although the BJP relies on the popularity of its New Delhi leadership in the state, the youth’s interest in CPI(M) may offer it a chance to make a comeback.
