The death of a booth level officer in West Bengal due to cardiac arrest has ignited a political battle between the ruling TMC and the BJP, with accusations of workload pressure and politicization of the tragedy.
The decision came after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju called Trinamool supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a source said.
President Droupadi Murmu has withheld assent to three amendment Bills passed by the West Bengal Assembly, which sought to replace the governor with the chief minister as chancellor of state-run universities.
''Women are coming into public spaces in larger numbers than ever before. They are educated, capable, opinionated, and determined.' 'But the more women push for access to public space, the harder they are pushed back -- through attacks like this, through discrimination, through the glass ceiling, through the deliberate denial of recognition.'
Union Home Minister Amit Shah accuses West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of facilitating illegal immigration from Bangladesh, leading to demographic changes. He promises to end infiltration if BJP wins the upcoming elections.
The TMC and BJP have engaged in a blame game following a chaotic Lionel Messi event at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, which saw spectators storming the field and the main organiser being arrested for alleged mismanagement.
'The TMC can't go on forever taking advantage of the people's fright of the BJP.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticized the BJP-led central government for allegedly harassing Bengali-speaking people across India, warning of political consequences. She also accused the Centre of influencing the Election Commission and vowed to fight any persecution of Bengalis.
Protests erupted across several districts of West Bengal over alleged harassment of people in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, leading to road blockages and tyre burning. Demonstrations were held in South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, Jhargram, and Purba Medinipur.
Political consultancy firm I-PAC has reacted to the Enforcement Directorate's raids at its Kolkata premises, calling it an "unsettling precedent." The raids have triggered political upheaval in West Bengal, where elections are due in months. The firm, engaged by the TMC, said it would continue to work in an "unfazed and unperturbed" manner.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleging interference and obstruction by the West Bengal government, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in its probe into an alleged coal-pilferage scam. The ED claims Banerjee removed key evidence during raids on I-PAC offices and the premises of its director, Pratik Jain.
Two suspected cases of Nipah virus have been detected in West Bengal, prompting a national outbreak response team to be deployed. The central government is providing full support to the state.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed BJP leaders to intensify grassroots outreach in West Bengal, setting performance benchmarks for the upcoming state elections. He emphasized party unity and the importance of booth-level workers.
Humayun Kabir, recently suspended from the TMC, has launched a new political party, Janata Unnayan Party, and announced candidates for the 2026 assembly elections.
'Both Rahul and Modi are the same in the way they run their parties. Modi too wants faceless people and so does Rahul Gandhi.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, speaking at the University of Oxford, stressed the importance of inclusive development and stated that division in society is counterproductive. She emphasized that her governance model prioritizes the welfare of all sections of society and does not allow discrimination, highlighting the state's diverse population and the need for a human-centric approach.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the TMC government in West Bengal of patronizing infiltration, leading to demographic changes and riots. He reassured refugees and promised action against illegal migration if the BJP comes to power.
Protests continue in Kolkata against attacks on minority Hindus in Bangladesh. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari threatens a large-scale protest if the attacks are not stopped.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claims a Bengali-speaking woman and her child were threatened in Delhi after an alleged assault. She urges Bengali migrant workers in BJP-ruled states to return to Bengal if harassed and questions the absence of central commissions in BJP-ruled states when atrocities occur.
Prashant Tamang's wife Martha Aley shut down all speculation about his sudden death on January 11 by confirming that his death was 'natural' and occurred while he was asleep.
What should have been a landmark footballing moment in Kolkata turned into a cautionary tale on Saturday morning, as Lionel Messi's brief appearance at the Salt Lake Stadium was cut short amid crowd mismanagement
Six policemen were injured and a police vehicle vandalised in a mob attack during an attempt to arrest a TMC worker in Sandeshkhali, once again pushing the coastal block into political focus ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticizes Delhi Police for referring to Bengali as 'Bangladeshi national language,' sparking political controversy.
The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Election Commission on a plea by Trinamool Congress MPs alleging irregularities in the revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal.
Chatterjee had quit the TMC in November 2018, resigning as minister, mayor and district president, citing personal reasons.
In 2022, she launched the 'Khela Hobe Divas' with party leaders organising football matches across West Bengal to promote sports.
'Mamata needs to address the anger and resentment among various sections of the Hindu community because low-scale communal violence has always paid richer electoral dividends for the BJP.'
Addressing a massive Martyrs' Day rally in Kolkata, Banerjee gave a clarion call to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2026 assembly elections and eventually oust it from power at the Centre, declaring, "If this linguistic profiling doesn't stop, our resistance movement will reach New Delhi."
The application claimed that since the inception of the SIR process in the state, the EC has issued instructions to officers at the ground level through "informal and extra-statutory channels", such as WhatsApp messages and oral directions conveyed during video conferences, instead of issuing formal written instructions.
This is the fourth such death reported in the state since the exercise began on November 4, sparking a political blame game.
Between 9 and 13 December, the Argentina Football Fans Club of Kolkata is turning Aikatan, a cultural hub just a short walk from Salt Lake Stadium, into a full-blown Messi fan zone, drenched in Argentina's blue and white.
Angry fans hurled bottles and damaged fibreglass seats, forcing the police to intervene as they struggled to bring the situation under control at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday.
'The chief minister believes the poorest of the poor have the first right on government resources.'
The Calcutta High Court has cancelled the membership of senior leader Mukul Roy in the West Bengal assembly under the anti-defection law, marking a significant moment in Indian jurisprudence.
Estranged TMC MLA Humayun Kabir's plan to build a mosque modeled on the Babri Masjid in Murshidabad has sparked a political firestorm in West Bengal, with accusations and warnings escalating tensions ahead of state elections.
A series of deaths and health-related incidents involving staff deployed for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in multiple states has triggered alarm, even as West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission, calling the ongoing exercise 'chaotic, coercive and dangerous'.
Humayun Kabir, a former TMC minister, has been suspended from the party after announcing plans to lay the foundation of a "Babri Masjid-style" mosque on December 6. This move has sparked controversy and raised concerns about communal tensions in West Bengal.
A Trinamool Congress delegation on Friday alleged before the Election Commission top brass that around 40 SIR-related deaths had occurred in West Bengal so far, a charge junked by the poll authority.
Kabir cut a ceremonial ribbon alongside visiting clerics on the dais as slogans of "Nara-e-Takbeer, Allahu Akbar" were raised at the venue, where thousands had gathered since morning.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP-led Centre of spreading communal hatred and failing to protect the country's border. She alleged that families affected by recent violence in Murshidabad were being prevented by the saffron camp from meeting her. Banerjee also criticized the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for its visit to Murshidabad and questioned its priorities, asking whether NHRC members visited BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and ethnic violence-hit Manipur.
