New Delhi
Following its defeat in the Kaliganj Assembly bypoll in West Bengal, the BJP on Monday claimed it had secured its highest-ever share of Hindu votes in the constituency, attributing the gain to growing “Hindutva consciousness” and backlash over the Murshidabad riots. The seat was won by Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate Alifa Ahmed, who defeated BJP’s Ashish Ghosh by a margin of 50,049 votes—surpassing the 2021 victory margin of her late father, Nasiruddin Ahmed.
TMC chief Mamata Banerjee hailed the result, stating that people of all religions and communities had voted for her party. “The main architects of this victory are ‘Maa, Mati, and Manush’,” she said.
In response, BJP’s co-incharge for West Bengal and IT cell head Amit Malviya accused the TMC of relying on a “captive vote bank” comprising Muslims, illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators, and radical elements. He claimed Hindu voters had turned against the TMC, asserting BJP’s Hindu vote share rose from 70% in 2021 to over 74% in the latest bypoll.
Malviya also condemned the death of a young girl in a bomb blast allegedly during TMC’s victory celebrations, blaming the state’s deteriorating law and order. “This is the blood price of Mamata’s violent, vote-bank-driven politics,” he said. Calling the suspension of four BJP MLAs from the Assembly “authoritarian panic,” Malviya alleged an “undeclared Emergency” in West Bengal. He concluded that Banerjee’s government was losing ground and accused her of fuelling polarisation to retain power.