Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari was on Friday elected the leader of the BJP legislature party in West Bengal, paving the way for him to become the first BJP chief minister of the state.
BJP sources said Adhikari's name was proposed at the legislature party meeting here and formally announced by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the presence of newly elected BJP MLAs and senior party leaders.
Shortly after his election, Adhikari drove to Raj Bhavan and met Governor R N Ravi to stake a claim to form the new government. The governor invited him to take the oath as chief minister at Brigade Parade Ground on May 9.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah and chief ministers of NDA-ruled states are expected to be the key attendees.
West Bengal is the second state to have a BJP chief minister for the first time. Last Month, Samrat Chaudhary took the oath as Bihar Chief Minister as the state got its first BJP-led government.
Congratulating Adhikari, Shah said he was confident the BJP leader would provide stable governance and fulfil the aspirations of Bengal’s people. "I have known Suvendu ji for a long time. He is a fighter. He understands administration, and he has fought TMC at every step. I am fully confident that together with our team, he will provide good governance in Bengal. The struggle he undertook has now yielded results. The sacrifices of over 321 workers have borne fruit today," Shah said.
Earlier in the day, sources said BJP’s West Bengal unit chief Samik Bhattacharya also proposed Adhikari’s name for the top post during discussions. Both Bhattacharya and Adhikari had emerged as frontrunners in the race for the chief minister’s chair following the BJP’s emphatic victory in the Assembly elections.
Adhikari, widely seen as the BJP’s “giant slayer” in Bengal politics, won from both the Nandigram and Bhabanipur Assembly constituencies. In Bhabanipur, he defeated outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee by a margin of over 15,000 votes.
As the BJP prepares for government formation in the state for the first time, discussions were also underway in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah on appointing two deputy chief ministers, sources added. One of the deputy chief ministerial posts is likely to go to a woman leader.
Agnimitra Paul has emerged as a strong contender for the role after winning from Asansol Dakshin. Arriving at the BJP legislature party meeting, Paul said the BJP’s victory had fulfilled the dream of Syama Prasad Mookerjee.
Sources further indicated that the second deputy chief minister could be chosen from north Bengal, with Shankar Ghosh being seen as a possible contender.
West Bengal has not had a deputy chief minister in nearly two decades. Late CPM veteran Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was among the last leaders to hold the post during the Left Front era under former chief minister Jyoti Basu.
For the BJP, Bengal had long remained among the final major frontiers resisting the party’s expansion despite its growing dominance across large parts of India. The victory, therefore, carries ideological, organisational and emotional significance for the saffron leadership, which had invested enormous political capital in the state over the past decade.
For Adhikari, the moment marks the culmination of a turbulent political journey that traversed the Congress, the Trinamool Congress and finally the BJP, transforming him from Banerjee’s trusted lieutenant into her fiercest political challenger and eventually the face of Bengal’s first saffron government.
The son of former Union minister Sisir Adhikari, the 55-year-old leader began his political career in the Congress’s student wing Chhatra Parishad during the peak of Left dominance in Bengal politics.
The BJP won 207 in the 294-member West Bengal Assembly, delivering a big blow to TMC, which managed 80 seats only.
(With inputs from PTI)
