NEW DELHI: In 2021 what seemed largely impossible, five years later it became exhaustively debatable. Can Suvendu Adhikari defeat Mamata in home turf Bhabanipur? The question gained political legitimacy in 2026 given the nail-biting contest in 2021 Nandigram battle, where Mamata had challenged her ex-protege.Taking the battle to Suvendu’s bastion Nandigram didn’t go well for Mamata as the BJP leader defeated her with over 1900 votes. That was round one between Mamata vs Suvendu. The second round in 2026 was more intense as, this time, Suvendu took the battle to Mamata’s citadel, Bhabanipur.This has been the rivalry-arch of Suvendu Adhikari, who is the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) chief minister-elect, with Mamata Banerjee.The legislative party of the BJP elected Suvendu Adhikari as its leader, making him the apparent choice for the chief minister, who will also be the saffron party’s first leader to be at the helm of West Bengal.“I announce the name of Suvendu Adhikari elected as Leader of West Bengal BJP Legislative Party,” says Union home minister Amit Shah, appointed as the Central Observer for the election of the legislative party leader in West Bengal.The contest between Mamata and Suvendu was back and forth at high-stakes Bhabanipur assembly constituency, which ended up with historic mandate in favour of BJP’s heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari, who defeated Mamata Banerjee by 15,105 votes.Mamata’s defeat in Bhabanipur, considered to be her bastion with deep hold of TMC’s cadre, resonates with the larger picture of the West Bengal verdict where the BJP bulldozed the ruling Trinamool’s 15-year rule.
