Mamata Banerjee will contest from Bhabanipur, facing BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, setting up a major political showdown.
TMC will contest 291 seats, leaving 3 to its ally, while BJP has released its first list of 144 candidates.
West Bengal Assembly polls will be held on April 23 and 29, 2026, with counting scheduled for May 4.
The political atmosphere in West Bengal has intensified ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. After the BJP’s announcement of its candidate list on March 16, 2026, the TMC has also announced its candidate list. The spotlight is firmly on the high-profile Bhabanipur constituency, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is set to contest once again, setting up a direct electoral face-off with BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari.
TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee announced her party’s candidates at a press conference in Kalighat, confirming that the party will contest 291 out of the 294 seats in the state. The remaining three seats in the Darjeeling hills—Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong—have been left to ally Anit Thapa of the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha as part of a pre-existing alliance. Banerjee reiterated that the party’s list reflects a mix of experienced leaders and fresh faces, with representation across women, SC/ST communities, and minority groups.
Among the key candidates, Mamata Banerjee will contest from Bhabanipur, a constituency that remains central to her political strategy. Several prominent leaders have also been fielded across the state, including Arpita Ghosh from Balurghat, Gautam Deb, Paresh Chandra Adhikari, Udayan Guha from Dinhata, and former IPS officer Humayun Kabir from Domkal.
On the other side, the BJP has released its first list of 144 candidates as part of its election preparations. One of the biggest surprises in the BJP’s list is the decision to field Suvendu Adhikari from both Bhabanipur and Nandigram, setting the stage for a renewed political rivalry.
The Mamata Banerjee–Suvendu Adhikari contest carries historical significance. In the 2021 West Bengal Assembly Election, Banerjee had contested from Nandigram against Adhikari, who had recently joined the BJP after leaving the TMC. The election saw a closely fought battle, with Adhikari eventually defeating Banerjee by a narrow margin. The outcome remains a key reference point in the current political narrative, with both leaders once again heading toward a high-stakes confrontation, this time in Bhabanipur.
Meanwhile, political tensions have also spilled onto the ground, with reports of provocative remarks and aggressive campaigning by party workers. The campaign rhetoric reflects the intensity of the contest, as both parties attempt to consolidate their support bases.
The election schedule has already been announced, with polling in West Bengal set to take place in two phases on April 23, 2026, and April 29, 2026, with counting scheduled for May 4, 2026. As the campaign gathers momentum, Bhabanipur is emerging as the focal point of the electoral battle. The Election Commission said it remains committed to conducting the elections in a peaceful and transparent manner and has urged voters to participate in large numbers.
[VP]
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