All eyes are on West Bengal as it heads into polls alongside four states and the Union Territory of Puducherry. But unlike elsewhere, Bengal is not just voting—it is simmering. A high-decibel campaign, rising political aggression and deepening distrust in institutions have turned the contest into a test of nerves as much as numbers.
The Bharatiya Janata Party has emerged as the principal challenger to the ruling Trinamool Congress, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front and the Indian National Congress remain marginal, yet potentially consequential. Stakes are high, rhetoric sharper and the ground situation increasingly volatile.
The stakes are high for the BJP in the two-phase polls. With continuous onslaught on the TMC, chief minister Mamata Banerjee, her nephew and party general secretary Abhshek Banerjee and even on the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi was holding a rally at the famous Brigade Ground, the BJP cadres barged into the house of a TMC leader Shashi Panja and reportedly assaulted her and other TMC workers. It was front page news in Delhi papers.
The BJP claims to get enough votes to form the government. Though the state party leaders and workers are not that optimistic. It has, however, pitted Shuvendu Adhikari from Bhowanipur constituency in South Kolkata against Mamata Banerjee. To be safe, he is also contesting from Nandigram. Former state party president, Dilip Ghosh, and some others who had contested the Lok Sabha elections, and lost, along with 41 sitting MLAs are in the fray.
The BJP’s presence in the southern Bengal is sporadic.
The supposed fortress of the BJP in North Bengal may not remain strong. The party had got 54 of the 76 assembly seats from there. For various reasons, it may be succumbing to internal and external strife, says many North Bengal leaders. The BJP MP, Nagendra Roy, popularly known as Maharaja of Coochbehar, erstwhile royal principality that was supposed to have included most parts of North Bengal and seven districts of Assam, says this time the contest is tougher despite tantrums of the party.
It included nine seats from Coochbehar alone. Roy says neither his party nor the state government has done much to ameliorate the conditions of the people of the area suffering from acute poverty and lack of education.
He and other leaders have been demanding that the Central Government set at least one AIIMS and four super category hospitals. There is also demand for opening at least four Kendriya Vidyalayas in Coochbehar alone. Roy has asked the Centre to open an international airport and other facilities in the poorest area of the state.
The people need these to counter the total neglect of thew region.
The special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls too has caused panic among the voters. Almost every household has more than one person affected by the voters list. It’s a vital issue in the state. Disenfranchisement is considered a severe loss as people it would lead to loss of their basic rights, including the right to have jobs and livelihood.
The Election Commission investigated potential procedural irregularities where certain booths reported 100% clean rolls, which was deemed “statistically improbable”. This led to a contentious revision process. About 60 lakh names await clearance amid constitutional complications.
Special Treatment
Bengal is receiving significant attention—often described as special treatment—from the EC for ensuring peaceful and fair electoral process.
The “special treatment” itself has become a contentious word. The TMC has protested Election Commission transfers of several police and administrative officials, including the chief secretary and the director general of police. Mamata Banerjee herself has accused the EC of being in league with the state opposition and fears it could play a “game”. This has given rise to speculations. The ECI has scrutinized voter lists in specific regions, leading to discussions about the removal of “fake voters,” a move praised by opposition parties like the BJP but criticized by the ruling TMC as political harassment.
The BJP, as it was in Odisha, is in a hurry to replace Mamata. All principal BJP campaigners, including Prime minister Narendra Modi, are firing salvos against the chef minister. Her latest largesse, announced minutes before the EC announcements of polls, for the priests are being derided. The BJP is leading the campaign with a number of supposed scams in education and many other spheres.
Would that turn the voters against? The BJP itself is not sure but feels that the hyped threats of Muslim “aggression” and the scams would help it sweep the polls. The ground realities may differ. The BJP has been on a prolonged campaign mode since the 2021 state polls and hopes to have a dividend.
More the party has become aggressive and uses abusive language, more it is said to have lost the sympathy of the people, including its core voters. Most say that it would not be easy for the BJP to repeat its 2021 performance.
The ECI has emphasized that only permanent government employees may act as Booth Level Officers (BLOs), warning against political influence on these officials. The commission also directed the state administration to enforce the rule of law. It is deploying 480 companies of Central para-military forces.
Bengal elections are expected to be interesting. If the BJP loses seats, who would be the gainer – TMC or the CPI-M led Left Front? So far, the Left is not expected to do much better than their zero in the last assembly. Congress? None expects it do well. The TMC has girded up against the BJP and have initiated cautionary steps, including an army of forceful orators as campaigners.
None, however, rules out a miracle as officials are being dislodged. Apart there is trust deficit in the machinery, including the EC, central forces and other accompaniments. The TMC leaders have lambasted the changes saying these were deliberate.
Monday, March 23, 2026