Suvendu Adhikari stakes claim to form BJP government in West Bengal
Suvendu Adhikari on Friday evening met Governor R N Ravi and formally staked claim to form the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in West Bengal for the first time.
Senior BJP leaders, including Dilip Ghosh, Locket Chatterjee and Tapas Roy, accompanied Adhikari to Lok Bhavan.
The meeting came shortly after Adhikari was elected leader of the BJP Legislature Party during a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Kolkata.
Speaking to reporters after his election, Adhikari thanked BJP national president Nitin Nabin and Shah for reposing faith in him.
“With the blessings of the Prime Minister, I have been elected as the Leader of the Legislative Party. I have received support from all MLAs. There is democracy in the BJP. We will fulfil all commitments made during the elections for both the organisation and the people,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Shah officially announced Adhikari’s name as the BJP Legislature Party leader, paving the way for him to become the first BJP Chief Minister of West Bengal.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Nisith Pramanik described Adhikari as the party’s strongest chief ministerial face in the State.
He said the BJP’s electoral victory reflected the people’s desire for change and added that issues related to infiltration and border fencing would remain priorities for the new government.
“The person who defeated Mamata Banerjee twice and dedicated himself to the party and the country is best suited to lead Bengal. At present, there is no alternative to Suvendu Adhikari in the State,” Pramanik said.
Adhikari is scheduled to take oath as Chief Minister on Saturday, coinciding with the birth anniversary of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
Following his election, Adhikari also met newly elected BJP MLAs and senior party leaders in Kolkata ahead of government formation.
Adhikari contested from Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the Assembly elections and defeated outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from Bhabanipur by more than 15,000 votes.
In the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the BJP secured 207 seats, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC) won 80 seats after ruling the State for 15 years. (ANI)
