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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked BJP MPs from West Bengal to effectively counter the Trinamool Congress-led government in the state and work towards winning the assembly elections next year. BJP MPs from West Bengal met the prime minister, along with Khagen Murmu -- the Lok Sabha member from Maldah Uttar -- who was attacked by a mob in October. Modi enquired about Murmu's well being and told BJP members from the state to counter the West Bengal government to save democracy in the state. "The prime minister told us to keep fighting the West Bengal government to save democracy. We will remove this government. The prime minister told us that we have to win these elections and we will win the elections," Sukanta Majumdar, president of the West Bengal unit of the BJP, told reporters after the meeting. Darjeeling MP Raju Bista said the prime minister praised the dedication and tireless efforts of the BJP workers in West Bengal and highlighted their role in public outreach
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is expected to address over 12,000 traders at the Byabasayi Sammelan 2025' here on December 17, in a major outreach to the state's MSME-driven trading community ahead of next year's assembly elections. A business meet is also scheduled for December 18 to facilitate interactions with industry representatives, as the usual two-day international business summit is not being held this year in view of the upcoming polls. The Byabasayi Sammelan 2025' assumes significance as the state government seeks to consolidate support from all quarters, including small businesses, in the run-up to the 2026 assembly elections. The Confederation of West Bengal Trade Associations (CWBTA) president Sushil Poddar said the event, where Banerjee will be the chief guest, would provide a platform for the CM to connect with thousands of small traders, who form the backbone of Bengal's supply chain. Traders create livelihood opportunities for more than one crore peopl
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday announced that her government will provide a financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of 39 people who, she claimed, have died in the state due to "SIR-induced panic", including cases of suicide. Thirteen others who fell ill during the SIR exercise including three booth-level officers (BLOs) allegedly burdened by "excessive workload" would also be given Rs 1 lakh each, she said. The chief minister, citing government assessments, said the rollout of SIR on November 4 has triggered widespread fear and distress among sections of the public. "Till now, 39 ordinary citizens, including four BLOs, have died due to the SIR panic, including suicides. Their families will be provided financial assistance," she said after a review of the state's 14-year development record at the state secretariat Nabanna. Banerjee added that 13 others were currently under treatment after collapsing or falling critically ill during ...
A Trinamool Congress delegation on Friday met the full bench of the Election Commission of India here and alleged that at least 40 SIR-related deaths had taken place in West Bengal, accusing the poll panel chief of having "blood on his hands". The 10-member delegation, led by TMC Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien, met the EC officials amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal. The delegation consisted of Lok Sabha MPs Mahua Moitra, Satabdi Roy, Kalyan Banerjee, Pratima Mondal, Sajda Ahmed, and Rajya Sabha MPs Dola Sen, Mamata Thakur, Saket Gokhale, and Prakash Chik Barik. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, O'Brien said the party raised five questions, but Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar did not give any answers. "We started the meeting by stating that the CEC has blood on his hands. We raised five questions. After this, Kalyan Banerjee, Mahua Moitra, and Mamata Bala Thakur spoke and shared whatever they had to in about
Amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, a 10-member Trinamool Congress delegation led by Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien met the full bench of the Election Commission here on Friday. The delegation included TMC Lok Sabha MPs Satabdi Roy, Kalyan Banerjee, Pratima Mondal, Sajda Ahmed, and Mahua Moitra, and Rajya Sabha MPs Dola Sen, Mamata Thakur, Saket Gokhale, and Prakash Chik Barik. The meeting comes against the backdrop of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's letter to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, seeking his "immediate intervention" on two recent concerns. Banerjee referred to the state CEO's direction to district election officers not to engage contractual data-entry operators and Bangla Sahayata Kendra staff for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), voters' list cleanup exercise, or other poll-related work, and a proposal to set up polling booths inside private residential complexes. It also follows the T
The Election Commission (EC) has called Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders for a meeting on Friday, after the party sought time with the poll panel amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in 12 states and Union territories, including West Bengal. In a letter to West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, the EC said on Monday that a delegation comprising an authorised representative of the party and four others can meet its top brass at 11 am on Friday. The TMC, however, wrote to the EC again on Tuesday, saying a 10-member delegation would come for the meeting, with a senior party leader saying they will not agree to the upper limit on the number of members set by the poll panel. TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee also challenged the EC to telecast the proceedings of the meeting live. In its letter, the EC pointed out that TMC leader Derek O'Brien had requested for an appointment with a delegation of party MPs. "The Commis
The Trinamool Congress on Saturday accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of acting to appease a particular political party and linked the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to recent multiple deaths, including those of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and ordinary citizens. The party also claimed that 34 people in the state have died during the ongoing SIR exercise and demanded that the ECI take responsibility for these deaths. Senior TMC leaders Arup Biswas, Chandrima Bhattacharya and Partha Bhowmick visited the CEO's office on Saturday and submitted a memorandum outlining these concerns. "Work that normally takes two years is being compressed into two months. The Commission is being accused of trying to favour a political party. The names of 150 to 200 voters are being deliberately omitted at each booth. The Commission's website is full of errors. These lapses are costing lives," senior West Bengal minister Arup Biswas told reporters. The TMC leaders also alleged that B
West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose will lead a team of security personnel, who would carry out a search operation at the Raj Bhavan on Monday in the wake of allegations by a TMC MP that arms and ammunition were stacked within its premises, an official said. Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee had on Saturday accused Bose of "sheltering BJP criminals" inside the Raj Bhavan and "arming them with bombs and guns". "The entire Raj Bhavan will be searched by a joint team of the Kolkata Police and central forces deputed here on Monday to find out whether there are arms and ammunition stacked inside. The Governor will be leading the search operation," the official told PTI. Members of the civil society and journalists will be allowed to accompany Bose during the exercise, he said. The TMC MP had made the allegations on Saturday, hours after Bose said that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was essential to "clean up the election process". Bose on Sunday said he so
The Trinamool Congress on Friday asserted that the poll results in neighbouring Bihar, where the BJP-led NDA is heading towards a landslide victory to retain power, will not have any impact on next year's assembly elections in West Bengal. TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh claimed in a post on X that the Mamata Banerjee-led party will come to power for the fourth time with over 250 seats. He said the Bihar poll results also showed again that the Congress failed in its opposition to BJP. "That is Bihar's equation. It has no connection with Bengal. It will not affect Bengal. In Bengal, the factors are development, unity, harmony, rights, and self-respect. With 250+ seats, Mamata Banerjee will become chief minister again," Ghosh, a former Rajya Sabha MP, said. "It has once again been provenand repeatedly demonstratedthat the Congress has failed in its opposition to the BJP," he said. The TMC leader said there will be curiosity about which direction the BJPJD(U) relationship in Bihar goes.
The opposition BJP and the Congress on Sunday held protests in various places across West Bengal over the alleged gang rape of a medical student in Durgapur, seeking exemplary punishment of the accused. Another opposition CPI(M) and the BJP questioned the law and order situation in West Bengal after the alleged incident, and claimed that the state is not safe for women. Asserting that nobody involved in the alleged gang rape of a medical student at Durgapur on Friday will be spared, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee urged female boarders, especially those from outside the state, to follow hostel rules and not venture out late at night. Three persons, all residents of Durgapur, have been arrested in connection with the crime. CPI(M) central committee member Sujan Chakraborty criticised Banerjee, saying that by asking female students not to venture out at night, she made it clear that West Bengal is not safe for women. BJP supporters held a protest march and staged a sit-in
Veteran TMC MP Saugata Roy has courted controversy by claiming that a party should not be obsessed with organising fairs and tournaments ("khela and mela") but rather focus on political activities, particularly when elections are near. Opposition parties in West Bengal have long been accusing the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress of giving attention only to "khela and mela", ignoring the serious development and administrative issues. Roy was attending a 'Bijoya Sammilani' (post-Durga Puja meet to exchange greetings) at Baranagar, which falls under his Dumdum Lok Sabha constituency, on Friday night when he made the comments, leaving hundreds of TMC supporters and others present stunned. "When a party gets busy prioritising fests and tournaments, it gradually loses its political soul. We must keep in mind that only six months are left before the assembly polls in the state. "The party should put the focus on political course of action, on firming up strategy to cope with the ...
The TMC on Wednesday hit out at the BJP over the vandalism at its Tripura unit office, alleging that "state-sponsored political terrorism" had been unleashed in the northeastern state under the saffron party's rule. Addressing a press conference at the Trinamool Bhavan here, West Bengal minister Shashi Panja said a five-member TMC delegation had left for Tripura to meet party workers and assess the situation on the ground following Monday's attack at Banamalipur in Agartala, the home constituency of former Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Deb. "There is an intolerant and violent BJP government in Tripura. The incident that occurred on Monday demonstrates how those who claim to protect democracy are behaving otherwise. The video evidence is clear," Panja said. She alleged that the vandalism took place "in the presence of police," which stood as "mute spectators." "This is state-sponsored political terrorism. There is no democracy left in Tripura. The police were standing there, watchin
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday claimed that the Centre was taking undue credit for lowering GST rates, though the move was initiated by the state. Her statement came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an address to the nation, said a GST savings festival will begin from the first day of Navratri' on Monday, which, coupled with the income tax exemption, will be a "double bonanza" for most people. Without naming the Prime Minister, Bannerjee said, We are losing Rs 20,000 crore as revenue, but we are happy about the lowering of GST. But why are you (Modi) claiming credit for it? We had sought a lowered GST. It was our suggestion at the GST Council meeting with the Union Finance Minister (Nirmala Sitharaman.
Former Trinamool Congress MP Mimi Chakraborty on Monday appeared before the ED for questioning in a money-laundering case linked to an alleged illegal betting app, officials said. The statement of Chakraborty, 36, is being recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in a case related to an "illegal" betting app named 1xBet. The ex-MP and actor is understood to be linked to the app through certain endorsements and financial transactions. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) wants to understand her links with this app during the questioning. The agency is probing multiple such cases involving illegal betting apps that are alleged to have duped numerous people and investors worth crores of rupees or have evaded a huge amount of taxes. Former cricketers Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan have been questioned by the federal probe agency in this case earlier. Actor Urvashi Rautela, 31, has been asked to depose on Tuesday in this case by the ED. Rautela is 1xBet's Indian ...
West Bengal minister Chandranath Sinha on Saturday surrendered before an Enforcement Directorate (ED) court here in connection with its investigation into alleged irregularities in primary school recruitment, an official said. According to sources in the central agency, Sinha, who is West Bengal's minister in charge of micro, small and medium enterprises and textiles, appeared before the special ED court in Kolkata earlier in the day and formally surrendered in compliance with court orders. The ED sought his custody, but the court granted him an interim bail on a personal bond of Rs 10,000, subject to conditions, the official said. The court stated that although bail has been granted, Sinha will not be allowed to leave his assembly constituency or Kolkata for the time being. "He must cooperate with the investigation. These conditions must be followed until the hearings related to the case are concluded," the ED official said, quoting the court order. Sinha's legal counsel, when ..
A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court here on Saturday remanded TMC MLA Jiban Krishna Saha, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), to judicial custody for 14 days. Saha, who was arrested on August 25 by the federal agency on money laundering charges, was produced before the court at the end of his six-day ED remand. The agency's lawyer Bhaskar Prasad Banerjee prayed before the special court judge for Saha's judicial custody. The MLA did not make any bail prayer before the court. The legislator from the Burwan constituency in Murshidabad district was arrested by the federal probe agency after searches were conducted at his residence. The raids also covered the premises of his associates and an alleged middleman named Prasanna Kumar Roy. Saha was earlier arrested by the CBI in connection with the alleged school jobs recruitment irregularities in April, 2023 and was granted bail by the Supreme Court in May, 2024. The ED has alleged that Saha, along with hi
With the Election Commission planning to add nearly 14,000 new polling booths amid prospective Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of rolls in West Bengal, the BJP faces a shortage of Booth Level Agents (BLAs), exposing a critical organisational gap that could weaken its 2026 poll challenge, while the TMC, with no such issues, exudes confidence. For the Trinamool Congress, the expansion of polling stations from the existing 80,000 to an estimated 94,000, spread across 294 assembly seats, is less a burden than an opportunity to tighten its grip at the grassroots. In contrast, the BJP functionaries acknowledge they are planning to cover only about 70 per cent of booths with BLAs during the SIR exercise, well short of what is needed to ensure an effective presence statewide. In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP could deploy polling agents in around 50,000-55,000 of West Bengal's existing 80,681 booths. The target now stands at 65,000-70,000, but insiders admit the party may struggle to ge