In the West Bengal assembly elections, the BJP has swept several districts bordering Bangladesh. While the outcome is part of the larger BJP wave across the state, the ‘Bangladesh factor’ appears to have played a part too.
In the West Bengal assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has swept several districts bordering Bangladesh.
While the outcome is part of the larger
BJP wave that swept the state, the ‘Bangladesh factor’ appears to have played a part as well.
After Sheikh Hasina’s ouster in Bangladesh following weeks of street violence,
Islamist forces took over the country, and cyclical violence against Hindus and other minorities continued unabated under the 18‑month‑long rule of Muhammed Yunus. Observers said that concerns about the Islamist campaign spilling over across the border into West Bengal helped consolidate Hindus as an electoral bloc.
In West Bengal, Hindus have never voted as a bloc, but the BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) have managed to turn them into one this time, according to Deep Halder, an author and political analyst who focuses on West Bengal and Bangladesh.
“The issue of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh by radical forces, and concerns about the violence spilling over into West Bengal reinforced the consolidation of Hindus. This is how the BJP won despite the TMC being confident about its victory with the support of Muslims, who form around 30 per cent of the state’s voters, and beneficiaries of welfare schemes across religious and caste lines,” Halder told Firstpost.
Follow our live coverage of West Bengal election results
here
As a result, the electoral map shows —see below— the BJP sweeping border districts.
Overall, the BJP is ahead on 204 seats, limiting the TMC to just 83 seats, as per the latest trend at 6:15 pm.
In an article for CNN‑News 18, Madhuparna Das reported that the BJP pursued a whisper campaign after Hasina’s fall about Jamaat’s entry into West Bengal.
Through such a campaign, Das noted, the BJP crafted a single, cohesive identity of the ‘persecuted’ Hindu majority seeking safety and dignity.
Das further reported that while Muslim consolidation appears to have held firm, migrant and women voters seem to have rallied decisively against the TMC.
First Published:
May 04, 2026, 18:33 IST
End of Article
I write on international affairs and India’s foreign policy. I am a compulsive reader, occasional book reviewer, and an aspiring tea connoisseur. I tweet with @madhur_mrt handle on X. You can drop me tips at madhur.sharma@nw18.com. I am open to reading your feedback, or heeding Netflix recommendations. I have previously written for Outlook magazine, covering Indian politics, domestic policy, and law.
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