Governor R N Ravi dissolved the West Bengal State Legislative Assembly with effect from May 7 after completion of its term, according to an official notification. The order stated: “In exercise of the power conferred on me by sub-clause (b) of Clause (2) of Article 174 of the Constitution of India, I hereby dissolve the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal with effect from 07th of May, 2026.”
The current Assembly was constituted in May 2021 after the Trinamool Congress, under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, returned to power for the third consecutive term in the state.
The new government in West Bengal will be sworn-in on May 9, the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, at the Brigade Parade Ground, in Kolkata at 10 am and it is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, chief ministers of BJP-ruled states and top NDA leaders.
However, confusion over the formation of the new government began after outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she would not resign after her party, the TMC, was defeated by the BJP in the Assembly elections.
She alleged that the elections were “stolen by manipulating electronic voting machines”.
“We have not been defeated. I have not been defeated. I will not resign. There is no question of me going to Lok Bhavan. In this election, the BJP and the Election Commission played a dirty game…They forcefully grabbed votes,” Banerjee had said at a press conference on Tuesday, a day after the results were declared.
Banerjee lost to BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari by over 15,000 votes in Bhabanipur.
“I was assaulted inside the counting centre. They hit me in my belly and on my back. I was not allowed to enter. My agent was also not allowed to enter. If such atrocities were committed against me, imagine what happened to other candidates,” said Banerjee.
Alleging EVM manipulation, Mamata Banerjee said, “How can EVMs have 90 per cent and 95 per cent battery during counting? We have all the proof.” She also said that the Trinamool Congress was planning action against the BJP and the Election Commission. “We have an action plan which is being prepared. But we can’t share that with you now,” she said.