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Up to date: Could 05, 2026 20:47 IST
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], Could 5 (ANI): West Bengal has been thrust right into a constitutional and political standoff following the Bharatiya Janata Social gathering’s (BJP) landmark victory within the state meeting elections.
Outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has sparked a firestorm by firmly rejecting requires her resignation, regardless of the BJP securing a commanding two-thirds majority.
The election outcomes, which noticed the BJP surge to 207 seats and relegate the Trinamool Congress (TMC) to only 80, mark a seismic shift in Bengal’s political panorama. Nevertheless, the transition of energy seems removed from seamless.
Addressing the media on Tuesday, a defiant Banerjee accused the Election Fee (EC) and the BJP of “looting” the democratic course of. Regardless of the numbers, she insisted that her get together stays the ethical victor.
“I can’t resign. I didn’t lose. I can’t go to Raj Bhavan… the query would not come up. We did not lose the election. They will defeat us formally via the Election Fee, however morally we received the election,” Mamata Banerjee asserted.
The TMC chief labelled the Chief Election Commissioner the “villain” of the election, claiming Digital Voting Machines (EVMs) had been tampered with and citing suspicious 80-90% battery costs.
Banerjee accused the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of enjoying a key position within the “manipulation” of the election course of. “Unhappy to say, the CEC grew to become the villain of this election to loot the democratic rights of the individuals and to loot the EVM,” she mentioned, referencing her perception that the election outcomes had been tampered with.
She claimed that the EVMs had inexplicably proven an 80-90% cost, elevating suspicions about their integrity. “Two days earlier than the election, they began arresting our individuals. They modified all IPS and IAS officers. They chose individuals from their get together, and the BJP performed the sport instantly with the Election Fee,” Mamata Banerjee alleged.
Nevertheless, in a seemingly contradictory flip, Banerjee later referred to herself as a “free chook” and a “commoner” who now not holds a “chair,” signalling her intent to pivot towards strengthening the INDIA Alliance on a nationwide degree.
Banerjee additionally alleged she was “manhandled and kicked within the stomach” throughout the counting course of, claiming CCTV cameras had been deliberately disabled whereas her brokers had been assaulted.
She claimed that her get together’s counting brokers had been crushed and that she was “manhandled, assaulted and kicked within the stomach” whereas making an attempt to intervene. “They snatched away all types; even ladies weren’t spared,” Banerjee recounted, including that CCTV cameras had been mysteriously turned off throughout the alleged assault.
In response to Mamata Banerjee’s assertion, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee described the occasions surrounding the elections as a “chori” (theft) within the counting course of. “All candidates had been brutally assaulted. All counting brokers had been brutally assaulted and thrown out by the CISF and CRPF… There is no such thing as a transparency in counting,” he mentioned, describing the incident as a “nice risk to democracy.”
The BJP has dismissed Banerjee’s allegations because the determined rhetoric of a defeated chief. Social gathering spokespersons identified the logistical impossibility of her claims, given her Z+ safety cowl.
Referring to the TMC’s loss within the elections, BJP MP Saumitra Khan mentioned, “They misplaced within the vote proportion… Kolkata’s public made them lose… The police belong to the administration and the structure… HM Amit Shah has supplied us freedom.”
Taking a swipe at Banerjee, BJP Nationwide Spokesperson Ajay Alok mentioned, “Does not she really feel ashamed of telling so many lies? She is the Chief Minister, and she or he has Z+ safety. How can the central forces beat him up?” He additional added that Banerjee’s affect had waned and that “Hindus took revenge for this with their votes and gave her a befitting reply.”
Unfazed by the TMC’s protests, the BJP is transferring ahead with plans for a grand inaugural ceremony. The date holds vital cultural weight, because the get together seeks to align its victory with Bengali identification.
In gentle of the large BJP victory, which was the primary in West Bengal, BJP chief Prem Shukla outlined plans for a grand swearing-in ceremony, scheduled for Could ninth, coinciding with Guru Rabindranath Tagore’s delivery anniversary.
“Could ninth would be the date for the swearing-in ceremony. It is a stepping stone to Bengal’s glory,” he mentioned.
Amid mounting controversy over Banerjee’s refusal to resign as Chief Minister, BJP MLA-elect Suvendu Adhikari mentioned that he did not should say a lot on the problem since the whole lot is talked about within the Indian Structure. “All the things is talked about within the Structure. I needn’t say a lot,” Adhikari instructed reporters right here.
In the meantime, the outgoing CM expressed confidence within the help she obtained from opposition leaders, together with Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal, Uddhav Thackeray, Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav, and Hemant Soren, all of whom prolonged their solidarity.
“All of the allies of the INDIA Alliance instructed me that they’re completely and completely with me,” Mamata Banerjee mentioned, including, “I’ll strengthen the INDIA staff, similar to a small individual. I haven’t got any chair now, so I’m a commoner. I’m a free chook,” she added.
Whereas Mamata Banerjee additionally expressed her continued dedication to public service, noting that she had by no means withdrawn any pension or wage all through her 15 years in energy. “I’ve given my whole life in service to the individuals,” she mentioned.
Banerjee emphasised that her focus now’s to proceed strengthening the INDIA alliance and be sure that her get together stays an influential drive regardless of the electoral setback.
Whereas the BJP prepares to kind its first-ever authorities in West Bengal, Banerjee’s refusal to concede gracefully means that the state is headed for a interval of intense friction. With the TMC alleging a “nice risk to democracy” and the BJP claiming a “liberation” of the state, the legitimacy of the electoral course of stays the central flashpoint in Bengal’s new political chapter. (ANI)