Daijiworld Media Network - Kolkata

Kolkata, Jan 5: West Bengal is heading for a high-voltage assembly election with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) intensifying its challenge to the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) under the direct supervision of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The party is mobilising its organisation from booth-level operations to a central war room, aiming to convert its expanded support base into an electoral breakthrough.

In the previous assembly elections, the BJP made a dramatic rise from just three seats to 77, emerging as the principal opposition. Party leaders are now confident that stronger grassroots mobilisation, the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and what they describe as growing internal fissures within the TMC could tilt the balance in their favour.

The BJP is keen to capitalise on these factors to bring an end to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s 15-year rule. Political observers expect a fiercely contested battle, with both major parties deploying all available resources to secure dominance in the state.

Addressing party workers on December 30, Amit Shah asserted that the BJP would oust the Mamata Banerjee government by winning the upcoming polls with a two-thirds majority. He accused the TMC of corruption, misgovernance and fostering infiltration, alleging that the ruling party has “dangerously altered” the state’s demography by facilitating illegal Bangladeshi infiltration for electoral gains. Shah also promised that a BJP government would establish a robust “national security grid” to completely stop infiltration through West Bengal.

BJP sources said the party has carried out extensive groundwork across the state over the past five years and is now sharpening its strategy ahead of the elections. The BJP, they said, will fight on issues such as Bangladeshi infiltration, women’s safety, political violence and corruption.

A senior BJP leader claimed that Mamata Banerjee is facing increasing pressure as internal cracks within the TMC widen, particularly after Humayun Kabir announced the launch of a new party. The leader also pointed to Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s recent meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which has triggered political speculation.

BJP leaders believe that Kabir’s entry into the fray could significantly dent the TMC by splitting Muslim votes, as he has announced plans to contest the assembly polls.

Meanwhile, TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee struck a confident note on Friday, asserting that the Mamata Banerjee-led government would win at least one seat more than its previous tally.

In the 2021 assembly elections, the TMC secured 216 seats in the 294-member House, improving on its 2016 performance by five seats. The BJP won 77 seats, while the Left-Congress alliance was reduced to zero.