After its historic victory in West Bengal, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has begun preparations to form its first government in the state, with several names emerging as contenders for the chief ministerial post.
The saffron party won 202 seats, securing more than a two-thirds majority and ending the Trinamool Congress’s 15-year rule, decisively reshaping the state’s political landscape.
Suvendu Adhikari, widely credited as the architect of the BJP’s landslide win, has emerged as the frontrunner for the chief minister’s position, according to media reports. Adhikari defeated Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in her Bhabanipur stronghold by over 15,000 votes, marking a major political upset.
Once the poster boy of the Trinamool Congress and a key face in Banerjee’s anti-land acquisition movement in Nandigram, Adhikari switched to the BJP in 2019—a move that dramatically altered West Bengal politics and propelled him to prominence. His victory against Mamata in the 2021 Nandigram assembly election further cemented his state-wide political stature.
Adhikari, the current Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, has risen through the BJP ranks thanks to his mass appeal and aggressive political style.
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Apart from Adhikari, other potential contenders for the chief minister post include BJP state unit chief Samik Bhattacharya and vice-president Agnimitra Paul. Party strongmen Dilip Ghosh, former state president instrumental in expanding BJP’s presence in West Bengal, and former Union minister Nisith Pramanik are also reportedly in the race.
Known for its strategic surprises, the BJP could even choose an unexpected candidate, with speculation that a woman chief minister might be appointed to bolster the party’s push for the recently stalled women’s reservation bill in Parliament. Agnimitra Paul and Roopa Ganguly are the two most prominent women leaders in the state considered for the top post.
Agnimitra won Asansol Dakshin by a margin of over 40,000 votes while Roopa wrested Sonarpur Dakshin by more than 35,000 votes.