According to pollster Pradeep Gupta, years of TMC "misrule" that created a "climate of fear", Prime Minister Narendra Modi's charisma and the organisational abilities of Amit Shah and the RSS brought the BJP to power in West Bengal.
A significant 7.87 per cent increase in the BJP's vote share in West Bengal, reaching 45.84 per cent, propelled the party to secure an additional 130 assembly seats, bringing their total to 207, while the Trinamool Congress experienced a 7.22 per cent decline, losing 135 seats and falling to 80.
The only thing that might make the BJP stop trying to isolate Muslims completely will be if substantial numbers of the community vote for the party that flaunts its animosity towards it, notes Jyoti Punwani.
For over a decade, the TMC's dominance in districts such as Murshidabad, Malda and Uttar Dinajpur rested on a near-complete consolidation of Muslim votes, a bloc that accounts for 50 per cent or more of the population in large parts of this belt.
'If the Opposition associates itself too much with the minorities, then it becomes easy for the BJP to get Hindu consolidation votes.'
'In West Bengal, the BJP's ideology of Hindutva will be customised to cater to the culture and the cultural imperatives of Bengalis.'
What lessons opposition parties need to learn post defeat of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal elections? The election saw spectacular victor of BJP which rose from 3 seats in 2016 to 206 seats in 2026 assembly elections.
BNP's Gayeshwar Chandra Roy secured a victory in Dhaka-3 constituency.
Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari has accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of resorting to 'dramabazi' in front of a counting centre. Adhikari claims Banerjee's actions are futile and will not alter the election outcome.
'Among the leaders whose names are going around, V D Satheesan is the leader who will fit this kind of situation.'
Congress leader K Muraleedharan criticises blaming communities for voting choices in Kerala, responding to BJP leaders' remarks about the Catholic church. He also expresses confidence in the UDF's prospects in the upcoming election and criticises the Election Commission's arrangements.
The BJP's landslide victory in West Bengal has not merely redrawn the electoral map but overturned the operating logic of politics in the state, breaching the TMC's entrenched fortress despite a decade-and-a-half of dominance, minority consolidation, and a sustained "outsider" narrative.
The campaign for the current election cycle ended on Monday as canvassing for the final phase in West Bengal concluded with a bitter war of words between rival parties over cross-border infiltration, corruption, unemployment and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The construction of a Babri Masjid-style mosque in West Bengal's Murshidabad district has become a focal point in the upcoming elections, reshaping voter loyalties and raising communal tensions.
Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee has urged voters to support the TMC as the only way to defeat the BJP, particularly in areas with a strong Congress base. He accused the BJP of dividing communities and failing to address key issues such as river erosion and farmer distress, while outlining the TMC's welfare plans.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused the TMC of opposing the SIR exercise to protect its vote bank of infiltrators, alleging that unchecked illegal immigration under its rule in West Bengal has altered the demography of many areas.
'Remember Vijay had never spoke of himself as a Christian when he was a film star.' 'The BJP strategy is they want the Christian minority constituency to move away from the DMK.' 'That is what the BJP wants so that it will be very easy to mobilise Hindu votes.' 'This strategy is to weaken the Dravidian ideology and bring in religion based politics into Tamil Nadu.'
The BJP will focus on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's development agenda in the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections, rather than projecting a chief ministerial candidate, according to state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya.
'98 lakhs in Bengal, 97 lakhs in Tamil Nadu, 2.83 crores in Uttar Pradesh.'
'The BJP and its allies can decide the fate of many candidates.'
'They will have to adjust themselves to the new reality. Because if they don't understand this changed political perception, their future will be difficult.'
'Unfortunately the treasury is empty, in zero. So we have to first make money for the development activities of the state, and also to continue the welfare measures.'
Union Minister Giriraj Singh has accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of appeasing Muslims and protecting infiltrators, while the BJP promises to bring 'Ram Rajya' to the state if elected.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has urged voters to 'take revenge' for the deletion of names from electoral rolls, alleging the BJP is behind the changes. She also addressed concerns about EVM tampering and the deployment of officers to other states.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor cited the Kerala Assembly election results as an example of communal harmony, highlighting instances where voters looked beyond caste and religion.
Hopefully, the BJP will realise that it's the right time for parivartan (change) in its polarising poll strategies after achieving the impossible-looking goal of winning West Bengal, argues Sheela Bhatt.
'The real fault line in Assam is not Hindu versus Muslim. It is Assamese versus Bengali -- and within that, the specific anxiety about undocumented Bangladeshi settlers claiming land and altering the demographic balance of the state.'
The BJP must respect Bengal's pluralistic ethos and with this historic mandate give the state the constructive change it truly deserves, expects Kolkata native Payal Singh Mohanka.
Already, within the week of the election results it became apparent that the Congress' DNA has not changed from its traditional approach to politics as but a game of thrones, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'This is a major rupture in Tamil Nadu's political order.' 'For the Dravidian parties, the message is clear: The old DMK-AIADMK binary is no longer guaranteed a future.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has alleged that the people of Diamond Harbour have been unable to exercise their voting rights for a decade. He assured people that the scenario has now changed, and the May 21 repolling in the Falta Assembly seat will re-establish voter rights.
The BJP has criticised Rahul Gandhi for his delayed response to the killing of a 26-year-old man in Uttam Nagar, Delhi, accusing him of hypocrisy and pandering to vote bank politics. BJP leaders allege Gandhi is attempting to whitewash the incident and protect the perpetrators.
'Today in Uttar Pradesh all big parties like Samajwadi Party, BJP or even Bahujan Samaj Party are out to woo smaller parties as they know the Hindu votes are getting divided.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led central government, accusing it of attempting to suppress voting rights and polarise the electorate ahead of the assembly elections.
A young Hindu tea garden worker was found murdered in Bangladesh, raising concerns amid upcoming parliamentary elections and a series of attacks against the Hindu community.
The extent of doubts over the fairness of this election can be assessed by juxtaposing two figures: Total votes polled by the two principal parties and the number of people who were disallowed from voting this time, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'Tarique Rahman's refrain during the electoral campaign was that the minorities are safe under BNP. He has to honour that promise.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused the Mamata Banerjee government of favouring infiltrators over the native population in West Bengal, asserting that the upcoming assembly election is a battle to save the state's identity.
Unlike films that end with the underdog becoming winner and being sworn in at a public ceremony, Vijay's trial by fire is only about to begin, predicts Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane has sparked controversy by claiming that Muslims did not vote for the BJP-led government and warning against disrespecting Hindu deities. His remarks follow tensions over alleged desecration of a Durga idol and previous controversial statements about Muslim voters.
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