The Bengal political drama following the election results on May 4 continues to escalate, with the air thick with allegations and counter-allegations flying between the Mamata-led Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party that marked its first historic win in Bengal.
As Mamata Banerjee refuses to resign as Bengal chief minister, alleging election rigging by the BJP, the opposition leaders such as Congress’s Rahul Gandhi Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut have thrown their weight behind her. Track updates on West Bengal news
In a show of solidarity, SP’s Yadav reportedly held a closed-door meeting with Mamata at her residence in Kolkata on Thursday. The meeting began at 3:15 pm, ANI reported, citing TMC sources who said that TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee was also present.
Akhilesh Yadav’s praise for Didi
Yadav reportedly praised Mamata and her nephew for the poll battle in Bengal and said, “Didi, you have not lost.”
“What a commendable battle you all have fought,” Yadav told Abhishek, ANI reported.
Earlier in the day, Yadav alleged that democracy in West Bengal had been undermined, claiming that voters were pressured during elections and did not exercise their franchise freely.
He accused the BJP of weakening democratic institutions. “No one has probably damaged democracy as much as the BJP has,” Yadav was quoted as saying, adding that the party “cannot tolerate women’s rise in politics” and that voting took place under coercion rather than free will.
Following the BJP’s landslide win in Bengal and the TMC’s crushing defeat, Yadav had on Tuesday accused the BJP of indulging in “shameful looting of votes” in West Bengal as he alleged misuse of police and administrative machinery during the election.
“The BJP is merely a gathering of fake leaders. They possess not even the slightest faith in democracy; their sole agenda is to loot. The BJP indulged in shameful looting of votes in West Bengal and showed no hesitation in misusing police and administrative machinery,” Yadav said while addressing party workers at the Samajwadi Party’s state headquarters in Lucknow.
“The BJP is merely a gathering of fake leaders. They possess not even the slightest faith in democracy; their sole agenda is to loot,” he stated.
TMC poll debacle and Bengal violence
Bengal has been on the edge following TMC’s massive defeat and Mamata’s ouster from power after 15 years. While incidents of violence were reported after the results were declared on May 4, the situation further worsened after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s close aide, Chandranath Rath, was shot dead in Kolkata’s North 24 Parganas district on Wednesday night.
Adhikari, who defeated Mamata from Nandigram in 2021, dethroned the TMC supremo from her Bhabanipur bastion in the recently concluded assembly polls.
The BJP marked a spectacular win in the Bengal polls by securing 207 of 294 seats, while the TMC’ s tally was reduced to just 15.
Earlier in the day, Yadav alleged that democracy in West Bengal had been undermined, claiming that voters were pressured during elections and did not exercise their franchise freely.
Speaking to reporters, he accused the BJP of weakening democratic institutions. “No one has probably damaged democracy as much as the BJP has,” Yadav said, adding that the party “cannot tolerate women’s rise in politics” and that voting took place under coercion rather than free will.
He also questioned incidents of political violence in the state, including attacks on party workers and damage to party offices, asking who would be held responsible for security lapses during the polls.
