For Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the BJP advent is no cause for worry yet.
In West Bengal, after a 15-year drought, the BJP now has an MLA in the state Assembly. The party's Samik Bhattacharya has won Dakshin Bashirhat. In 1999, the BJP had won the Ashoknagar assembly seat in alliance with the Trinamool Congress. (
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The Chowringhee seat has gone to the Trinamool. Nayana Banerjee defeated BJP's Ritesh Tiwari by 14,000-odd votes. But the BJP is number two there and delighted with the overall results. Said Rahul Sinha, state BJP chief, "People have expressed their anger against the Trinamool Congress. The message that has been given to the BJP is to uproot Trinamool from Bengal."
But the Trinamool claims the results show people have once again reposed faith in Mamata Banerjee and that the "slander campaign" over the Saradha chit fund scam has had no impact.
In the Lok Sabha polls, the Trinamool says, the BJP had led by 30,000 votes in the Dakshin Bashirhat assembly segment. But just 100 days on, their margin is down to under 2000.
Said Mukul Roy, All-India general secretary, Trinamool, "In just 100 days, the Modi magic has faded. Their support has been reduced. 28,000 people who had supported the BJP just three months ago in Dakshin Bashirhat, they have withdrawn their support from the BJP."
The chief minister was clearly pleased with the result. When Nayana Banerjee, the new MLA from Chowringhee and Trinamool MP Sudip Banerjee's wife, visited her at her office in Nabanna, she gave her a present: a painting by Mamata Banerjee. Ms Bandyopadhyay said, "Didi is very happy, very happy."
Ms Bandyopadhyay takes over from Trinamool's Sikha Mitra, who quit from the party, necessitating the by-polls.
The Left has been left out. In Chowringhee, the CPM candidate lost his deposit.