New Delhi, May 8 (IANS): Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair a crucial meeting of the BJP’s newly elected MLAs in Kolkata on Friday to decide the party’s chief ministerial candidate for West Bengal, marking a key step toward government formation. The legislature party meeting will determine the leader of the house, effectively finalizing the next Chief Minister. Senior central leaders are supervising the process as the BJP prepares to form its first government in the state. The development follows the formal dissolution of the 17th West Bengal Legislative Assembly on May 7, with the Governor issuing a notification ending its tenure. Outgoing CM Mamata Banerjee has continued to describe herself as “Chief Minister of West Bengal” on social media platforms despite the Assembly’s dissolution.
The election outcome has highlighted significant constituency‑level shifts. Of the 95 BJP victories where voter roll deletions exceeded winning margins, 80 were seats the party had not previously held. The BJP retained all 77 seats it won in 2021 and added 130 new seats overall. In Bhabanipur, Mamata Banerjee lost to BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari by 15,105 votes, while deletions stood at 45,240 – three times the margin. Similar trends were seen in Tollyganj, Jadavpur, and Indus constituencies. With the Assembly dissolved and political transition underway, all eyes are now on the BJP legislature party meeting, which will formally set the stage for announcing West Bengal’s new Chief Minister.