Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been appointed as the BJP’s central observer for West Bengal following the party’s sweeping victory in the 2026 Assembly elections, where it secured 207 out of 294 seats, ending Mamata Banerjee’s 15-year rule.
Shah, accompanied by Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi as co-observer, will oversee the BJP legislative party meeting in Kolkata to elect the new leader who will become the state’s Chief Minister.
The BJP’s triumph marks its first-ever government formation in West Bengal, a state long dominated by the Left and later the Trinamool Congress. The TMC was reduced to 80 seats in this election, while the Congress and Left failed to make significant gains.
Among the frontrunners for the Chief Minister’s post are Suvendu Adhikari, BJP state unit chief Samik Bhattacharya, Agnimitra Paul, and former state president Dilip Ghosh. The final decision will be made under Shah’s supervision and conveyed to the party high command.
The new Chief Minister is expected to take oath on May 9, 2026, in Kolkata, marking a historic political shift in Bengal’s governance and signaling the BJP’s growing influence in eastern India.
