After Trinamool Defeat, BJP's Suvendu Adhikari's "Akhilesh Next" Warning

BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, bouyant from historic victories in West Bengal's Bhabanipur and Nandigram on Monday, said the party's next focus is on the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

"Mamata (Banerjee), Tejashwi (Yadav), Rahul (Gandhi) finished, Akhilesh (Yadav) is next," he said, in a reference to the Samajwadi Party chief, who will be the main challenger to the BJP when Uttar Pradesh goes to polls next year.

While paying tributes to BJP workers who were killed in several incidents of violence in West Bengal, Adhikari said outgoing Chief Minister Banerjee was necessary. "Her political exile has started. She lost Nandigram in 2021 and has lost Bhabanipur this time by over 15,000 votes," he said.

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Adhikari likened the Trinamool Congress to the Aam Aadmi Party and said it will be finished. He called the Banerjee-led party corrupt, family-oriented and devoid of any ideology. "The Hindu people of Nandigram made me win again. There, the entire Muslim vote went to TMC. Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jains voted for me. This is hindutva, Bengal and PM Modi's win," he added. He also said that several CPM supporters voted for him.

#ResultsWithNDTV | 'Giant slayer' Suvendu Adhikari defeats Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur

"Defeating Mamata Banerjee was crucial. This is Mamata Banerjee's retirement from politics": @SuvenduWB#ElectionResult2026 @RahulKanwal pic.twitter.com/BFIMDIJsFz

— NDTV (@ndtv) May 4, 2026

The BJP leader said several TMC MPs and workers will join them.

In a dramatic, high-stakes contest that mirrored the political theatre of Nandigram five years ago, Adhikari defeated Banerjee in Bhabanipur by 15,105 votes after all 20 rounds of counting, according to the Election Commission.

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The outcome was a replay of the 2021 Nandigram election, where Adhikari had unseated Banerjee in a fiercely fought battle that reshaped Bengal's political narrative.

Adhikari, once a close aide of Banerjee and a key architect of the TMC's rise in districts like East Midnapore, now emerges as a frontrunner in discussions over the chief ministerial face of the BJP government.

He also defeated TMC's Pabitra Kar in Nandigram.