Page 3 - Mamata Banerjee

'Lotus blooms in West Bengal': PM Modi hails BJP's win in TMC bastion

Counting trends showed the BJP racing past the majority mark in the 294-member Assembly, signalling the end of the 15-year rule of the Trinamool Congress

BJP win may revive corporate interest in WB; realty may see achhe din: Analysts

A BJP win in West Bengal, said G Chokkalingam, founder and head of research at Equinomics, could see economic growth-related initiatives. More corporate capital, he said could find its way into WB.

West Bengal election results 2026: How key candidates are performing

Vote counting is underway in West Bengal, with BJP ahead in 194 seats as of 2 pm. Counting began at 8 am across 77 centres for 293 constituencies in 23 districts

West Bengal election: Mamata tells TMC agents to stay put as BJP leads

Mamata Banerjee urged TMC workers to stay at counting centres, alleging BJP and the Election Commission were hiding TMC's real lead as Bengal trends showed BJP ahead

Mamata alleges irregularities near strong rooms, asks workers to stay alert

TMC supremo claimed she had received reports from multiple districts regarding phased load-shedding and disruptions in CCTV surveillance

EC orders repoll in 285 booths in Bengal's Falta on May 21; counting May 24

The Commission's decision effectively annuls the earlier voting in the constituency, with fresh polling now scheduled later this month

Mamata, Abhishek to brief TMC counting agents ahead of Bengal poll results

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew and TMC's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee will hold a virtual meeting with all counting agents of the party on Saturday afternoon, two days ahead of the counting of votes polled in the assembly elections, a senior party leader said. The meeting, scheduled for 4 pm, will be attended by the counting agents from the 291 Assembly constituencies, where the ruling party fielded its candidates. The Anit Thapa-led Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) contested the remaining three seats in the Darjeeling hills. At the virtual meeting, the leaders are expected to brief the counting agents about their duties to ensure there are no lapses during the counting process on May 4. "The most important instruction to the agents would be to not leave the counting centres till the calculations are officially over and winning certificates handed over to the victors," the senior TMC leader, not wishing to be named, said. "All

If SIR affects WB polls, it would set a dangerous precedent: Omar Abdullah

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday said if the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls affects the outcome of the West Bengal assembly elections, it would set a dangerous precedent, against which the political parties need to safeguard themselves. Responding to a question about the high drama outside a strong room at Bhabanipur in Kolkata on Thursday night, he said it is West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's right to deploy people to guard the EVMs. "I have always said that I do not accept pre-poll rigging, and that safeguarding the EVMs after the polls is our responsibility. We used to do the same when there were ballot boxes; we would keep our people outside the strong room. So, it was Mamata Banerjee's right to keep people outside the strong room, and she did it," he told reporters here. Abdullah said vote theft is happening through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and not EVMs. "There is a difference between EVM (hacking) and what they are

West Bengal elections 2026: BJP wants to forcefully rig elections, says CM Mamata Banerjee

BJP wants to forcefully rig elections; our workers and people ready to die, says CM Mamata Banerjee

Polling begins for 142 seats in final phase of West Bengal elections

Voting began on Wednesday in 142 constituencies in the second and final phase of the West Bengal assembly elections, amid unprecedented security arrangements and a high-stakes contest that could decide whether the ruling TMC retains its dominance over southern districts or the BJP can force open the gates of power in the state. Polling started at 7 am with voters lining up outside booths across Kolkata, Howrah, North and South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Hooghly and Purba Bardhaman - districts that together form the political and electoral core of the state. Unlike the first phase, where the BJP sought to defend its north Bengal gains, the final round shifts the battle squarely to the TMC's strongest belt. In 2021, the ruling party had won 123 of these 142 seats, leaving just 18 for the BJP and one for the ISF. That arithmetic explains why the BJP has treated this phase as its real test. Without breaching south Bengal, there is little route to power in the state. At the centre of the conte

HC slams WB govt for delay in handing over land to BSF for border fencing

The Calcutta High Court has reprimanded the West Bengal government for failing to comply with its order to hand over land to the BSF to fence the India-Bangladesh border in the state, noting that only eight-kilometre stretches of the 127 km have been given to the border guarding force so far. On January 27, a division bench presided by Chief Justice Sujoy Paul had directed the state government to hand over 127 km of land "already acquired/purchased", for which "compensation" had been "received by the state government from the Centre", to the BSF by March 31. Castigating the state for not handing over the entire 127 kms of land to the BSF in nine districts by the end of March, the high court on April 22 directed the state government to file a detailed affidavit within two weeks, informing it of the steps taken to comply with its January order. It expressed displeasure over the state government handing over just eight kilometres of land instead of the 127 km as ordered by the ...

Campaigning ends for final phase of Bengal polls amid voter roll concerns

Shah says central forces to be deployed for 60 days more

How Mamata Banerjee's 15-year rule stacks up on welfare, investment

Under TMC, Bengal has seen expansion of welfare, but not big-ticket private investment

Entire Union cabinet, 19 CMs won't help BJP win Bengal polls: Mamata

TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on Saturday claimed that the BJP has deployed its entire machinery to defeat the regional party in the West Bengal assembly elections as almost the entire Union cabinet and CMs of NDA-ruled states are camping in the poll-bound state. Addressing an election rally at Uttarpara in Hooghly district, Banerjee accused the BJP of giving false promises to migrant workers from West Bengal employed outside the state. "The BJP is desperate, with 50 helicopters flying into West Bengal as almost the entire Union cabinet, from the PM to home, railway and defence ministers, as well as CMs of 19 NDA-ruled states camping in a single state West Bengal," the chief minister said. Compare this with only three helicopters being used by the TMC to campaign across the state. But all this hype and sound and fury will end in a whimper on May 4, she said. "On top of this, we are seeing central forces wherever we are going. They are bringing in armoured vehicles which are not put to

As the left fades from Bengal's landscape, BJP makes a fervent pitch

In West Bengal, the Left is in a dead heat with the Congress for the wooden spoon; Maoism in the tribal heartland has been entombed; and in Kerala, the Left fights double incumbency

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee alleges 'politicisation' of SC proceedings

ED tells Supreme Court it is not suggesting constitutional breakdown in West Bengal, as Mamata Banerjee raises concerns over politicisation of proceedings during elections

From Singur to welfare: How West Bengal's poll issues evolved since 2006

From industrialisation and land protests to welfare, jobs and corruption, West Bengal's election issues have layered over two decades shaping the 2026 political contest

Bengal SIR: Logical discrepancy not recognised term under EC, says Mamata

TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday alleged that "logical discrepancy" under the SIR exercise is not an officially recognised term under the Election Commission framework and was selectively applied in West Bengal, unlike Bihar, to benefit the BJP. Addressing a public rally at Pingla in Paschim Medinipur district, she said she has not seen a "dirty party" like the BJP. The West Bengal chief minister, urging people to vote against the BJP, said, "The BJP has snatched everything from you... Voting against it would be your only way to take revenge." The BJP is holding rallies at places that have direct railway connectivity with Uttar Pradesh and Bihar so that they can bring in people from those states to fill up the venues, she alleged. Elections to the 294-member assembly will be held in two phases on April 23 and 29, and the votes will be counted on May 4.

In Bengal's Murshidabad, roll deletions trigger 'decitizenisation' fears

Even as CM Mamata Banerjee has vowed to fight to restore the electors' rights, a sense of abandonment is surfacing among those who have been disenfranchised

Mamata Banerjee alleges BJP of threatening TMC candidates for support

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday alleged that the BJP was threatening TMC candidates, including state ministers, seeking their support if the saffron party falls short of the majority mark after the assembly elections. She also alleged that the BJP government at the Centre wants to carry out a delimitation exercise to trifurcate West Bengal, and that parts of the state could be merged with Bihar or Odisha, and it would result in hardships for the Bengalis living in those areas. Addressing poll rallies at Asansol in Paschim Bardhaman, Chhatna and Onda in Bankura district and Khandagosh in Purba Bardhaman, Banerjee said, "The BJP is threatening TMC candidates, including state ministers, seeking their support if it falls short of the majority mark after the assembly elections." The majority mark in the West Bengal assembly is 148. The BJP won 77 seats in the 2021 polls. "The BJP is planning to bring in a delimitation bill to divide West Bengal into three parts. It