Bhabanipur turns saffron with BJP roadshow; Suvendu Adhikari files nomination at Survey Building
Telegraph | 3 April 2026
A band of men, all with a touch of saffron in their clothes or accessories, stood savouring ice cream near the approach to Kalighat Bridge on Thursday afternoon, moments after a high-voltage BJP roadshow wound down.
A convoy of cars had just turned towards Gopalnagar, headed for the Survey Building in Alipore, where Suvendu Adhikari filed his nomination as the BJP candidate from Bhabanipur — the most-watched seat in Bengal. The roads were strewn with saffron confetti.
“This was not a roadshow. This was a victory parade. A BJP win in Bhabanipur is inevitable this time. Just wait for May 4,” said Rahul Das, a BJP functionary from Metiabruz.
Das said he had led a team of 90 men to the rally. “Most illegal voters who supported Trinamool have been deleted in the SIR. Even their supporters know the party is losing, in Bhabanipur and the rest of Bengal,” he said.
But not everyone was convinced.
The man driving the ice-cream cart nearby, who has been selling in the Kalighat and Hazra areas for nearly two decades, struck a cautious note. “The BJP is investing a lot in Bhabanipur. I saw the home minister from close for the first time. But defeating Didi on her home turf is not easy,” said the middle-aged vendor, a Bhabanipur voter who did not want to be named.
Union home minister Amit Shah led the roadshow, which began in front of Asutosh College on SP Mukherjee Road. Tensions flared at least twice during the procession, as BJP and Trinamool supporters nearly came to blows.
The first instance was near Kalighat, close to the residence of chief minister Mamata Banerjee, the Trinamool candidate from Bhabanipur. The second occurred near the Survey Building in Alipore. Police and central forces intervened and stood between the two groups on both occasions.
Many participants in the BJP rally had come from outside the constituency, and several residents and bystanders described the Bhabanipur contest as too close to call.
“She is under pressure,” said Vijay Kumar Ruia, owner of a 59-year-old stationery shop in Hazra, referring to Mamata. Ruia said the chief minister had visited his shop in the past.
Vipul Shah, a Paddapukur resident who watched the rally while waiting outside JD Park Metro station, felt a shift was coming.
“Trinamool has become complacent. Supporters think they can get away with anything,” he said.
Mamata won the Bhabanipur bypoll in September 2021 by 58,835 votes after Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay vacated the seat for her.
Earlier that year, Chattopadhyay had won by 28,719 votes. Mamata had also won the seat in 2011 and 2016. She lost from Nandigram in 2021 to Suvendu.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Trinamool’s lead in Bhabanipur narrowed to around 8,000 votes, with the party ahead in only three of the seven wards.
Despite the charged atmosphere, everyday life continued alongside the political spectacle. Bhabanipur, long known for its cosmopolitan character, remains home to Bengalis, Gujaratis, Sikhs, Sindhis and Marwaris.
On Hazra Road, a group of women, including college students, waited for an auto as campaign songs blared in the background.
“The BJP can try as much as it wants by bringing outsiders. Didi will still retain Bhabanipur,” said one of them, as her friends nodded in agreement.