After the NDA’s emphatic Bihar victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared Bengal as the BJP’s next major battleground. This announcement intensifies the pressure on the Congress, a party already fighting for relevance in a state dominated by Mamata Banerjee’s TMC and increasingly claimed by the BJP.
In 2011, Congress was still a meaningful partner in Bengal, winning 42 seats. The number rose slightly to 44 in 2016, but the organisation was already weakening. The implosion came in 2021, when Congress contested 92 seats and failed to win even one, shrinking to a mere 3% vote share. Former strongholds like Malda and Murshidabad slipped entirely away.
The BJP, meanwhile, climbed from 3 seats in 2016 to 77 in 2021, establishing itself as the primary opposition. For 2026, the party is aggressively positioned to challenge TMC.
Mamata Banerjee adds another layer to Congress’s crisis. Rejecting any alliance, she has declared TMC will fight alone and return with a two-thirds majority. Her dominance leaves Congress squeezed on both sides.
As 2026 approaches, Congress’s dilemma deepens: should it target the BJP to remain nationally relevant, or challenge Mamata to reclaim space in Bengal? More critically—does it have enough ground left to fight at all?
