Kolkata:

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday released its initial roster of 144 candidates for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections, headlined by a high-stakes challenge from Suvendu Adhikari in the Bhabanipur constituency.

The move places Adhikari, the current Leader of the Opposition, in a direct contest for the Kolkata seat held by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The choice is a deliberate echo of their 2021 encounter in Nandigram, where Adhikari defeated the Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader. Following that loss, Banerjee secured her position as Chief Minister by winning a subsequent by-election in Bhabanipur.

The candidate list features several prominent party figures across the state:

  • Dilip Ghosh: Fielded in Kharagpur Sadar.

  • Swapan Dasgupta: Nominated for the Rashbehari seat in south Kolkata.

  • Biman Mahto: Set to contest from Salboni in the Paschim Medinipur district.

In other key assignments, the party named Sumita Sinha for Kanthi Uttar in Purba Medinipur and Biman Ghosh for Pursurah in Hooghly. Madhavi Mahalder has been selected for the Kultali seat in South 24 Parganas, while Anima Datta and Lakshikant Sahu will represent the party in Palashipara and Jhargram, respectively.

The announcement comes just one day after the Election Commission of India confirmed the election schedule for the state’s 294 constituencies. Voting will occur in two phases on April 23 and April 29, with the final tally of votes scheduled for May 4.

The term of the current Legislative Assembly is set to conclude on May 7.

With inputs from PTI