High-voltage contest in Bhabanipur as Mamata, Suvendu locked in close race

A closely watched electoral battle is unfolding in Bhabanipur constituency of Kolkata, where West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari are engaged in a high-stakes contest during ongoing vote counting.

Counting began at 8:00am on Monday (May 4), with early rounds showing a tight margin between the two candidates before Banerjee gradually moved ahead in subsequent rounds.

By the sixth round, Mamata Banerjee had secured 30,548 votes, while Suvendu Adhikari stood at 11,155 votes, widening the gap to 19,393 votes.

Earlier, after the third round, Banerjee had polled 9,359 votes compared to Adhikari’s 8,461, indicating an initially competitive race.

Bhabanipur has remained politically significant, particularly after the 2021 state election when Suvendu Adhikari defeated Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram, while the Chief Minister later returned to the assembly through a by-election from Bhabanipur to retain her post.

While the individual constituency battle shows a clear lead for Banerjee, broader counting trends across West Bengal suggest the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leading in 193 seats, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC) is ahead in 97 seats, with the Left-Congress alliance leading in one seat each.

However, official results continue to fluctuate as counting progresses across the state.

The 294-seat West Bengal assembly requires 148 seats for a majority, with counting currently underway for 293 constituencies after one seat’s polling was cancelled.

Voting was held in two phases on April 23 and April 29, with counting taking place simultaneously across 77 centres in 23 districts, including Kolkata.