West Bengal elections: BJP, Left put out first list; Suvendu to take on Mamata again

The BJP's strategic candidate selection, featuring Suvendu Adhikari against Mamata Banerjee, signals a high-stakes battle in the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections, while the Left Front aims to revive its political presence.

Setting the stage for the electoral battle, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday released its first list of 144 candidates for the West Bengal assembly polls, fielding Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari from both Nandigram and Bhabanipur, a constituency held by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in a direct challenge to the TMC supremo.

The announcement made in New Delhi signals the BJP's attempt to sharpen the electoral narrative around Banerjee versus Adhikari while largely retaining its sitting legislators and inducting candidates from diverse professional backgrounds to broaden its social outreach ahead of the two-phase polls on April 23 and 29.

Adhikari's candidature from both Nandigram and Bhabanipur is widely seen as the party's most high-stakes decision in the first list, underscoring his role as the BJP's principal field commander in Bengal.

'Will defeat Mamata again'

While Nandigram carries deep political symbolism as the epicentre of the 2007 anti-land acquisition movement that propelled Banerjee's rise to power, it also became the stage for one of the most dramatic electoral battles in recent years when Adhikari defeated the chief minister there in 2021 by a slender margin of around 1,900 votes.

Bhabanipur, in contrast, is considered Banerjee's political stronghold. She returned to the assembly from the seat in a 2021 bypoll with a margin of more than 58,000 votes.

"I will win both the seats and defeat Mamata Banerjee again," Adhikari said after the announcement, projecting confidence that the BJP could challenge the ruling TMC even in its perceived strongholds.

Political observers say the decision also signals the BJP's reliance on Adhikari's organisational network across coastal Bengal and the Jungle Mahal region, where he retains significant influence.

"The BJP is clearly trying to personalise the election around a Mamata versus Suvendu narrative. By fielding him in Bhabanipur, the party is seeking to symbolically challenge the chief minister on her home turf," said a Kolkata-based political analyst.

BJP's Candidate Selection Strategy

The first list also indicates the BJP's preference for continuity, with the party renominating 41 of its sitting legislators. Among those repeated are Agnimitra Paul from Asansol South, Chandana Bauri from Saltora and Shikha Chatterjee from Dabgram-Phulbari.

Former state BJP president Dilip Ghosh will once again contest from Kharagpur Sadar, while former Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta has been fielded from the Rashbehari assembly seat in south Kolkata.

Two of the candidates are former MPs, and three are ex-MLAs. Female candidates have been given representation on 11 of the announced seats.

Youthful flavour to selection

The saffron party fielded candidates below 40 years of age in 36 seats, "as a symbol of trust in the youth". Similarly, 72 nominees are in the 41 to 55 age group, while 32 candidates are in the 56 to 70 years age bracket. Four candidates are above the age of 70.

The list reflects a deliberate attempt to project social diversity, with the BJP highlighting candidates drawn from varied professional backgrounds. Of the 144 nominees, 57 come from fields such as teaching, law, medicine, social work and the armed forces.

Teachers account for the largest group with 23 candidates, while the party has also fielded advocates, doctors, retired military personnel, journalists and cultural personalities such as actor Rudranil Ghosh. Former India cricketer Ashok Dinda has been renominated from Moyna.

Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's kin in fray

Soumitra Chattopadhyay, from the family of  Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, has been made the candidate from Naihati.

"This list reflects grassroots representation and social diversity. Many candidates have strong public engagement in their respective professions," a senior BJP leader said.

The inclusion of 41 sitting MLAs and three former legislators suggests that the party has opted to bank on existing political networks rather than undertake a large-scale reshuffle.

The BJP's list comes amid intense political debate over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which has triggered controversy after large-scale deletions in several constituencies.

In Bhabanipur alone, over 47,000 names have been struck off the voters' list while more than 14,000 remain under adjudication, developments that have already begun shaping the constituency's political discourse ahead of the polls.

In Nandigram, about 11,000 names have been removed from the electoral rolls during the revision process.

'Political theatrics': TMC

The BJP has argued that the exercise is necessary to remove alleged "bogus voters", while the TMC has accused the saffron party of attempting to manipulate the electorate.

A senior TMC leader dismissed the BJP's candidate list as "political theatrics".

"Fielding Suvendu Adhikari in Bhabanipur is more about optics than ground reality. The BJP knows the CM retains a strong support base in the constituency," the leader said.

However, BJP leaders insisted the party was entering the election with renewed confidence, pointing to its rapid political rise in the state -- from a marginal vote share of around four per cent in the 2011 assembly polls to over 38 per cent in 2021, when it emerged as the principal opposition.

Analysts say the first candidate list reveals a strategy built around three pillars: projecting Adhikari as the central challenger to Banerjee, consolidating existing legislative bases by repeating sitting MLAs, and widening the party's social outreach through candidates from varied professional and community backgrounds.

Left Front Announces Candidates

The Left Front on Monday announced its first list of 192 candidates for the West Bengal assembly elections, with outgoing Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya and CPI-M central committee member Minakshi Mukherjee among key nominees.

It is seen as a battle for survival for the CPI-M-led front in West Bengal, which ruled the state uninterruptedly for 34 years until 2011 and failed to win a single seat in the 2021 assembly polls.

Bhattacharya will contest from Jadavpur constituency in south Kolkata, while Mukherjee, a youth face of the Left Front, will fight from Uttarpara in Hooghly district.

Mukherjee was fielded from Nandigram in the 2021 elections and came third after BJP's Suvendu Adhikari and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee.

The Left Front has also fielded Sabina Yasmin from Kaliganj.

Blast victim's mother in fray

Yasmin's six-year-old daughter Tamanna was killed in a crude bomb blast allegedly from a victory rally during bypoll counting in June last year, which was won by the TMC.

Left Front chairman Biman Bose said the candidates for the remaining seats will be finalised and announced within three to four days.

"The fight this time is against the neo-Fascist forces in the country, the autocratic activities in our state, and the hardships faced by the people owing to these," Bose said while announcing the 192 nominees at a press conference here.

"We will also be fighting to revive Leftist politics and strengthen Left forces in the state," he added.

The assembly polls will be held in the state on April 23 and 29, and votes will be counted on May 4.

Bhattacharya, whose term in the Upper House of Parliament expires on April 4, was the mayor of Kolkata from 2005 to 2010.

Left fields women from 28 seats

Of the 192 seats for which candidates were announced, CPI-M will contest 142, the Forward Bloc (21), RSP (13), CPI (14), RCPI (1) and MCP (1).

Stating that women candidates have been fielded in 28 constituencies, Bose said, more women will be named for the remaining seats.

Bose said CPI(ML)-Liberation and the Indian Secular Front (ISF) will field candidates as associates, adding that apart from these, some independents and important names will also feature on the Left Front's list.

The ISF, which contested the 2021 assembly polls in a seat-sharing arrangement with the Left Front, won a single seat - Bhangar in South 24 Parganas.