The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has released its first list of 144 candidates for the West Bengal assembly polls, fielding Suvendu Adhikari from Mamata Banerjee's current seat of Bhawanipore in south Kolkata and from his traditional bastion of Nandigram.
Adhikari, the leader of the Opposition in the assembly, expressed confidence that the BJP could challenge the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) even in its strongholds.
The list also fielded former Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta from Rashbehari in south Kolkata, former state unit chief Dilip Ghosh from his earlier seat of Kharagpur Sadar in West Midnapore district, and designer-turned-politician Agnimitra Paul from Asansol South.
The BJP may not contest all 294 seats in the eastern state and may leave a few to its allies in the Darjeeling hills, leaders said.
The development came a day after Adhikari told the media that Nandigram – where he defeated Banerjee by 1,956 votes five years ago – was the seat he would like to contest.
Banerjee is seeking a fourth consecutive term after registering a landslide victory in 2021, riding on her party's grassroots network, her personal appeal especially among women, and welfare handouts.
