West Bengal Police are investigating the murder of Chandranath Rath, a close aide of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, and have formed multiple teams to trace the assailants.
TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee has urged BJP candidate Ratna Debnath to appeal to PM Modi to ensure the Aparajita Bill, aimed at time-bound punishment for rape convicts, is enacted.
Three people drowned and one went missing in the Hooghly river in West Bengal after bathing following Dol celebrations. The incident occurred at Balaram Sarkar Ghat in Bhatpara.
TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee has urged BJP candidate Ratna Debnath to appeal to PM Modi to ensure the Aparajita Bill, which aims for time-bound punishment for rape convicts, is enacted. Banerjee criticised the BJP's stance on women's safety and highlighted the TMC government's prompt action in a previous rape-murder case.
The Election Commission has intensified preparations for the West Bengal Assembly elections by reshuffling senior officers and deploying IAS and IPS officers in key poll management roles.
The Enforcement Directorate conducted fresh searches on the Merlin Group, a Kolkata-based real estate company, as part of an ongoing money laundering investigation. The searches follow previous raids on the group and its promoters, with the ED investigating alleged financial links between the company and West Bengal government officials.
'98 lakhs in Bengal, 97 lakhs in Tamil Nadu, 2.83 crores in Uttar Pradesh.'
Police in Kolkata are investigating the murder of Chandranath Rath, a close aide of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari. Multiple special investigation teams have been formed, and CCTV footage is being examined to trace those involved. The probe includes the possibility of contract killers being hired for the crime.
Exit polls suggest significant shifts in Indian state assembly elections, forecasting BJP gains in West Bengal and Assam, a DMK comeback in Tamil Nadu, and a tight race in Kerala.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed confidence that the BJP would form the next government in West Bengal after the assembly polls, asserting that he would return to the state for the oath-taking ceremony after results are announced on May 4.
The electorate did not vote for the BJP as much as they voted against the TMC. This is an important distinction that the new government will ignore at its own peril, points out Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
India's urban areas are projected to contribute 70 per cent of gross domestic product in 2025-26, up from 45 per cent in the 1990s, according to a report by Dun & Bradstreet.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of deleting over 9 million names from voter lists in an attempt to win the upcoming Assembly elections. She vowed to fight the alleged manipulation legally and politically.
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.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the TMC of sheltering goons who torture women and promised citizenship to refugees in West Bengal. He highlighted the BJP's commitment to women's security by giving poll tickets to victims of violence.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asserted that the TMC will return to power for a fourth term, urging opposition parties to unite against the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. She criticised the BJP's chargesheet against the TMC and alleged corruption in the Haldia dock complex. Banerjee also questioned Prime Minister Modi's claim of being the BJP candidate in all West Bengal seats.
The BJP, especially in its current edition under the prime minister, is clear that it seeks total exclusion of India's largest minority against whom it holds historical resentment, points out Aakar Patel.
The TMC has intensified its attack on the BJP, alleging a 'larger conspiracy' involving central agencies ahead of the second phase of West Bengal polls on April 29, while also questioning the credibility of the Election Commission.
This election is different. It is no longer simply about governance or welfare. It is about identity, fear, and who belongs. The BJP has successfully shifted the terms of the debate from what the government has delivered to who the real Bengali is and who is an outsider, points out Ramesh Menon.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee refuted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claims that the state lags in fish production, asserting significant increases during her tenure.
The Bhabanipur assembly segment is Banerjee's political bastion, where she is locked in a prestige battle against Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari in what is being seen as a symbolic rematch of Nandigram, where he had defeated her in the 2021 assembly polls.
In a significant move before the West Bengal assembly elections, the Election Commission has ordered a major reshuffle of the state's police force, transferring 19 senior officers to ensure fair and secure elections.
The Calcutta High Court has granted conditional bail to Sudipta Sen, the main accused in the multi-crore Saradha ponzi scheme, potentially leading to his release after 13 years in jail.
Mamata Banerjee accuses the BJP of importing voters for the Assam elections and plotting similar interference in West Bengal, raising concerns about electoral integrity and potential cultural restrictions.
A joint operation by Nepal and West Bengal police has led to the arrest of seven individuals and the seizure of counterfeit currency worth approximately Rs 70 crore from a flat near Kolkata.
BJP leader Nitin Nabin accuses the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government of altering West Bengal's demography by favouring infiltrators and neglecting the rights of the state's residents, promising to rectify the situation if the BJP comes to power.
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.
A Delhi court has granted the National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody of two men accused of murdering Bangladeshi political activist Osman Hadi, whose death sparked widespread unrest in Bangladesh. The suspects, arrested in West Bengal, are believed to have fled Bangladesh after committing the crime.
A BJP government in Bengal inherits more problems than it might care to admit at its moment of triumph, points out Ramesh Menon
BJP national president Nitin Nabin has pledged to change place names deemed antithetical to West Bengal's culture and address Bangladeshi infiltration if the party wins the state election.
Gurugram Police have arrested a Bangladeshi man for allegedly sending bomb threats via email to several schools in the city. The accused, Saurabh Vishwas alias Michael, was apprehended in Ahmedabad and confessed to creating the email ID used for the threats.
The Calcutta High Court has granted conditional bail to Sudipta Sen, the main accused in the multi-crore Saradha ponzi scheme, after 13 years of detention. The court cited the right to a speedy trial and Sen's prolonged detention as key factors in its decision.
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.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has refuted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claims about the state's fish production, accusing him of misrepresenting facts and alleging restrictions on non-vegetarian food consumption in BJP-ruled states.
Two individuals accused of the murder of Bangladeshi political activist Osman Hadi have been arrested in West Bengal, India, by the special task force (STF). The suspects, both Bangladeshi nationals, were apprehended in Bongaon while allegedly attempting to cross back into Bangladesh.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has launched a strong attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her government of appeasement politics, encouraging illegal immigration for votes, and leading the state into misrule and corruption.
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.
Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan criticised the West Bengal government over law and order and accused the TMC of sheltering infiltrators and manipulating demographics.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami criticised the Trinamool Congress' governance in West Bengal, citing issues such as increased infiltration, corruption, and atrocities against women during a rally in Hingalganj.
The draft rolls published on December 16 had already pared down the electorate from 7.66 crore to 7.08 crore, deleting over 58 lakh names on grounds of death, migration, duplication and untraceability.
