Suvendu eyes Bengal sweep: Can TMC, Congress unite to challenge BJP?

Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has confidently declared that his Trinamool Congress (TMC) party will secure a sweeping victory in the 2029 Lok Sabha election, claiming they are "set to win 42 out of 42 seats" in the state. This bold assertion came even before the results of the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls, which both went in TMC's favor.

The party's success in these constituencies, with particularly strong margins in Rejinagar where roughly 70% of voters are Muslim, has raised questions about the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) prospects.

The BJP, however, remains the incumbent party and has traditionally performed well in bypolls across West Bengal. In fact, TMC has won all 12 by-elections held in the last decade, including four seats previously held by BJP legislators. Notable victories include the capture of Raiganj, Ranaghat Dakshin, and Bagdah from the BJP in July 2024, as well as Madarihat in November 2024 and Kaliganj less than a year prior to its Assembly rout.

In Nandigram, BJP candidate Hasi Rani Rath defeated Congress candidate Milan Pradhan by a substantial margin of 1,22,753 votes. Similarly, in Rejinagar, BJP's Shankharavh Sarkar defeated Aam Janata Unnayan Party candidate Golam Nabi Azad by over 75,000 votes. Both candidates polled more votes than all their opponents combined, with BJP polling more votes than the sum of all other parties in both constituencies.

The BJP's success has been attributed, in part, to support from beneficiaries of the Annapurna welfare scheme, which provides ₹3,000 per month to eligible women.