US President Donald Trump extended his congratulations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Bharatiya Janata Party won the West Bengal Assembly elections, the White House said on Tuesday.
“The President congratulates Prime Minister Modi on this recent historic and decisive election victory,” White House spokesman Khush Desai said.
The BJP crossed the majority mark in the 294-member West Bengal Assembly, winning 206 seats, according to the Election Commission of India. With the cancellation of polling in Valta constituency, the effective majority mark stood at 147.
Bengal results: How the BJP breached the citadel
The BJP won 206 seats in the 294-seat Bengal Assembly, while the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress got just 80 seats when the results were announced on Monday.
The Indian National Congress and the Aam Janata Unnayan Party each got two seats, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the All India Secular Front each got one seat.
The mandate in Bengal was a result of the BJP’s campaign, as well as anti-incumbency in the state, according to an earlier HT report. This time, the BJP has managed to do away with the TMC’s ‘bohiragutu (outsider)’ label, and has also succeeded in creating fear of illegal immigrants. The party’s campaign has also largely stayed away from personal comments on current Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
The BJP ran a local campaign, focusing on slogans like ‘Joy Ma Kali’ and ‘Joy Ma Durga’ and stall level management. The efforts bore fruit on May 4 as the state that was the birthplace of Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mukherjee got its first BJP government, something Prime Minister Narendra Modi also mentioned in his speech at the party headquarters in Delhi on Monday.
Now focus on selecting Bengal CM
While TMC chief Mamata Banerjee described her defeat as a “conspiracy” and refused to resign from the post of chief minister, this will not stop Bengal from appointing a new prime minister. Under Article 164 of the Constitution of India, the Prime Minister holds office as long as he enjoys the confidence of the Assembly.
Given the loss of its majority, Mamata’s government is constitutionally indefensible. While the TMC chief seems determined to challenge the results, the BJP will now focus on choosing a new prime minister for Bengal.
Suvendu Adhikari, the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, who defeated Banerjee in her home state of Bhabanipur, has emerged as the front runner for the post. Other party leaders, however, said that the BJP has not ruled out the names of state unit president Samik Bhattacharya and vice president Agnimitra Paul as possible showdowns for the Prime Minister.
