Following the completion of vote counting in the recent assembly elections across four states and one Union Territory, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has claimed a historic victory in West Bengal, while the UDF alliance won in Kerala, defeating the LDF.
After the electoral setback in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced the formation of a special internal team in Kolkata to review the party’s defeat. Accusing the Election Commission of bias and large-scale irregularities, Mamata Banerjee said this was “the most brutal election” of her political life. She alleged: EVM manipulation and “electoral theft”, Removal of nearly 90 lakh voters’ names from the voter list, Deployment of preferred officials by the BJP, Arrests and raids on TMC workers before voting, Intimidation of party polling agents. She further questioned how EVM machines could still show 80–90% battery after voting, calling it “impossible.”
Mamata Banerjee directly accused the BJP and the Election Commission of working together, calling it “match-fixing.” She also claimed that constitutional institutions were misused and that the Prime Minister and Home Minister interfered in the election process. Despite the loss, she emphasized unity within the opposition INDIA bloc, stating that several leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal, Uddhav Thackeray had contacted her to express support. She also said Akhilesh Yadav would visit Kolkata for consultations, followed by other opposition leaders to plan a joint strategy.
Calling it a “murder of democracy,” Mamata Banerjee said she would continue the fight legally and politically, alleging large-scale voter manipulation and misuse of state machinery during the elections.
