BJP on Saturday night released its fifth list of candidates for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections, naming five new nominees while also announcing changes in three constituencies amid internal dissent.
The latest list, cleared by the party’s Central Committee, includes prominent names such as Raju Banerjee and Sourav Sikdar—the nephew of late veteran leader Tapan Sikdar, who served as a Union Minister during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government.
According to the announcement, Sikdar will contest from Dum Dum North, while Taraknath Chatterjee has been fielded from Krishnanagar North. Anupam Biswas will contest from Kalyani, and Rudraprasad Banerjee has been nominated from Uluberia East. Additionally, Anindya Raju Banerjee will contest from Madhyamgram.
Raju Banerjee, a former State Vice-President of the BJP, had earlier contested the 2021 Assembly elections from Kamarhati but lost to Madan Mitra of the Trinamool Congress (TMC). After remaining largely inactive in party affairs for nearly three years, he resumed political activities following the appointment of Samik Bhattacharya as the party’s State President. His inclusion in the latest list signals a renewed role within the party.
Meanwhile, the BJP has replaced candidates in three constituencies—Basirhat North, Behala East, and Bishnupur (SC)—following sustained protests from local party workers and supporters. In Behala East, Shankar Sikdar has been nominated in place of Sunil Maharaj. Kaushik Siddharth replaces Narayan Chandra Mandal in Basirhat North, while Abhijit Sardar has been fielded from Bishnupur (SC).
With this announcement, the BJP has now declared candidates for 292 out of the total 294 Assembly seats in the state, leaving two constituencies yet to be announced.
The West Bengal Assembly elections will be conducted in two phases, scheduled for April 23 and April 29, with the counting of votes set for May 4.
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