It was widely expected, and now it is official. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will contest from the Bhawanipur constituency as the Trinamool Congress candidate in the 2026 Assembly elections. The announcement was made on Tuesday by TMC All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee at Mamata’s Kalighat residence, where candidates for 291 seats were unveiled.

Bhawanipur and Nandigram, two of Bengal’s most politically significant constituencies, are once again in focus.

Just a day earlier, the BJP had fielded Suvendu Adhikari from both seats. Within 24 hours, Mamata confirmed her candidature from Bhawanipur, setting up a direct political contest.

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Striking a confident tone during the announcement, Mamata said, “We will get more than 226 seats in the '26 election,” expressing strong confidence not just in the party’s overall performance but also in her own victory from Bhawanipur. “We will win by many votes,” she added.

The rivalry between Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari dates back to the 2021 Assembly elections, when Mamata chose to contest from Nandigram. In a surprising outcome, Suvendu defeated her by 1,956 votes, securing 1,09,673 votes against Mamata’s 1,07,717.

In Bhawanipur, however, Mamata has a strong electoral record. In 2021, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay had won the seat, defeating BJP’s Rudranil Ghosh. He later vacated the seat to make way for Mamata, leading to a by-election in which she secured a massive victory, defeating BJP candidate Priyanka Tibrewal by nearly 58,832 votes.

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The Bhawanipur assembly constituency comprises wards 63, 77, 74, 71, 70, 72, 73 and 82 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. While the Trinamool Congress led in the 2016 Assembly elections, the BJP gained ground in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, indicating shifting political dynamics.

With both parties fielding heavyweight leaders and past electoral trends showing mixed signals, Bhawanipur is expected to witness an intense contest in the 2026 elections.