As the BJP romped to a victory in Delhi after 27 years, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari warned the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, saying West Bengal would be the next state where the saffron party would win in the upcoming Assembly polls.
“Dilli ki jeet hamari hai. 2026 mein Bengal ki baari hai (This is our victory in Delhi. It is Bengal’s turn to do it now in 2026),” Adhikari told reporters on Saturday.
The BJP, which is the opposition party in West Bengal, is aiming to end the reign of Mamata Banerjee, who has been at the helm since 2011. Assembly election in the eastern state, which has 288 seats, is scheduled to be held next year.
Adhikari took a dig at AAP, saying it was the end of ‘AAP-da’ (disaster) in Delhi and asserted that Bengali people living in the national capital voted for the BJP.
‘AAP-da ki vidaai ho gayi hai’ (The disaster has ended). The people have given them (AAP) a befitting reply. Only PM (Narendra) Modi can bring back the glory of Delhi and make it a clean city. I campaigned in the Bengali-majority areas of Delhi, but the infrastructure is in a very bad situation. They had destroyed Delhi. The BJP saw an easy victory in most of the Bengali-majority areas of Delhi,” he said.
Adhikari, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, congratulated PM Modi for the thumping win in Delhi, calling it a decisive mandate against AAP.
“Huge victory for @BJP4Delhi. I express my heartiest congratulations to Prime Minister @narendramodi ji for leading from the front and orchestrating this very special victory over ‘AAP-da’. Now, the people of Delhi will receive the benefits of double engine government in the national capital as Mr Farziwal (Kejriwal) has been swept out of power,” he tweeted.
He thanked the Bengali community in Delhi for their support and also congratulated BJP national president JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP workers.
WEST BENGAL BJP BOOSTED BY PARTY’S DELHI WIN
Voicing similar sentiments, Siliguri BJP chief Arun Mandal told news agency ANI, “Bengali people living in Delhi voted overwhelmingly for the BJP. In 2026, their families will vote for the BJP (in West Bengal). People will vote against corruption (of the Trinamool Congress-led state government) in 2026.”
West Bengal BJP president and Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar said the verdict in Delhi reflected people’s faith in development and would serve as a morale booster for party workers in his state ahead of next year’s Assembly election.
“The people of Bengal will also vote for the BJP in the next assembly polls and reject the Trinamool Congress,” Majumdar said.
The BJP won 48 of 70 Assembly seats in the national capital, reducing the AAP to 22 and relegating the Congress to the third spot again with a hat-trick of zeros. Several top AAP leaders, including Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Saurabh Bhardwaj lost from their constituencies, while outgoing Chief Minister Atishi managed to hold on to her seat.
The BJP’s victory was a marked improvement for the saffron party, which managed only single digits in the 2015 and 2020 Assembly elections.
TRINAMOOL CONGRESS SILENT ON BJP’S WIN
Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress, which supported and actively campaigned for AAP in the polls, refrained from making any official comment. However, a senior party leader, who did not wish to be named, admitted that the result was a setback for the anti-BJP front.
“The BJP winning in Delhi is not good news for the anti-BJP front. The reasons behind AAP’s defeat need to be assessed,” the leader said.
The result in Delhi came at a time when the AAP and Congress, both allies in the INDIA bloc, were in squabbles over a host of issues. It also follows when opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party, have been working towards a united front against the BJP.
(with inputs from agencies)
