Mamata's Mending Act

With West Bengal on edge a year before polls, the CM turns to 'universal religion' to blunt communal polarisation. ARCHIS MOHAN reports

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With still a year to go, the countdown to the West Bengal Assembly elections has begun, as seen from the flurry of political activity in the state over the recent weeks.

Tensions have remained high following the eruption of violence in Murshidabad over the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. The unrest has claimed at least three lives and drawn nationwide attention, sparking a fierce exchange of accusations between the BJP and the ruling Trinamool Congress.

According to the 2011 Census, Murshidabad's population comprised 66.27 per cent Muslims and 33.21 per cent Hindus. In the violence on April 12, an attack by a mob left Hargobind Das and his son Chandan dead, while a 17-year-old, Ejaz Ahmed Sheikh, was killed in subsequent police firing. Reports suggest that at least 400 people have been displaced in the wake of the unrest.

On the instructions of the Calcutta High Court, paramilitary forces were deployed in the district. The state government also ordered an inquiry, suspended police officials, filed cases against the accused, and arrested over 260 people. A team from the National Commission for Women and the Governor of West Bengal, C V Ananda Bose, have visited the area, both visits drawing criticism from the Trinamool.

In April-May 2026, four states — including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and BJP-ruled Assam — as well as the Union Territory of Puducherry, will go to the polls. Furthermore, Assembly elections are scheduled in Bihar by October-November this year.

Of the major states north of the Vindhyas, Bengal remains one of the last frontiers for the BJP, after its victory in Odisha in May 2024.