Nandigram Election Result 2026 Highlights: BJP's Suvendu Adhikari defeats Trinamool's Pabitra Kar by 9,665 votes

BJP candidate Shuvendu Adhikari has won the Nandigram seat, defeating Pabitra Kar by a margin of 9,665 votes.

Suvendu Adhikari is locked in a tight contest in Nandigram, leading by a narrow margin of 1,538 votes after 15 rounds of counting, with three rounds still remaining.
The closely watched constituency continues to see a neck-and-neck battle, with the final outcome hinging on the remaining rounds as counting progresses.

Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari have reached the Bhabanipore counting centre. Meanwhile, the BJP is set to win 200 seats in West Bengal, gaining from its 2021 tally of 77.

Scenes of celebration were witnessed among BJP workers in Kolkata as the party continued to lead in the West Bengal Assembly election trends, crossing 197 seats and moving well past the majority mark.

Amid the celebrations, workers were seen enjoying a traditional Bengali meal of fish curry and rice, marking the moment with food and festivities. Reacting to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's earlier statement that the BJP would not allow meat if it came to power in the state, a party worker dismissed the claim while speaking during the celebrations.

Suvendu Adhikari has taken a massive lead of 14,849 votes against his nearest rival, TMC's Pabitra Kar on the Nandigram seat in West Bengal. 

After coming to power in Bengal, nearly eight out of every ten Indian states will be governed by the BJP and its allied parties at the state level.

Suvendu Adhikari is comfortably marching ahead on the Nandigram seat with a margin of over 2,000 votes on EC trends. He is also being pegged to be the next chief minister of West Bengal. However, it is yet to be confirmed. 

The BJP, which has eyed Bengal for decades, is on course to capture it in what can be called a massive ideological shift in the eastern state. The party has crossed the 147-halfway mark and is currently leading in over 170 seats over Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress's 100 in early leads. Though Didi has time and again proven exit polls wrong, including the 2021 Assembly elections, it looks like this time the figures have got it right. If the BJP's lead holds, which at the moment it looks to be, it would be a historic victory for the party and a stinging rout of the TMC that has retained Bengal for 15 years. READ MORE

BJP candidate from Nandigram and Bhabanipur Assembly constituencies, Suvendu Adhikari, says, "The BJP will form the government with more than 180 seats."

Detailing booth-level trends from Bhabanipur, Adhikari claimed that in the first round, out of 14 booths, six are Muslim-dominated booths where the TMC earlier secured 90–95% votes. “This time they have not got that level of support. There is a crack,” he said, adding that the BJP has also gained a small share.

He further said that in the eight Hindu-dominated booths, he is leading. “This is a very good signal. Hindus are consolidated in favour of the lotus,” he said.

Adhikari projected that the BJP is heading towards “135 plus” seats based on initial trends. He described the broader trend as a mix of anti-incumbency and Hindu polarisation working in BJP’s favour. Read More

Here's the latest numbers at 11:07 am. BJP past halfway mark, TMC playing catch up. 

Additional Chief Electoral Officer Arindam Niyogi says, "The counting is proceeding strictly in accordance with the ECI's guidelines... The observers are all in position. Law and order are also under control. Furthermore, our Central Parliamentary Forces are also deployed in their positions, and there are no reports of any issues. Everything is proceeding smoothly." Regarding the operational procedure in CEO's office, he says, 'There is a three-tier security cordon established on the exterior. Consequently, mobile phones are not permitted inside. Within the premises, a wire-mesh partition has been installed; the counting agents are seated on the outer side of this partition, while the Counting Supervisors, Counting Assistants, and Micro-observers are positioned on the inner side, conducting the counting of the EVMs. The counting of postal ballots commenced first. Everything is proceeding smoothly... There are no adverse reports of any kind from anywhere..."

"In Bhabanipur, the first round was in the Muslim area in which I conceded a deficit of approx 2000 votes. After the second round, which was a Hindu area, I am leading with 2200 votes. Mamata Banerjee is trailing. I want to thank every Hindu, Sanatani those have cast their votes in favour of me... Mamata Banerjee will again be defeated in Bhabanipur..."

Suvendu Adhikari says Hindus have rejected Mamta Banerjee. He is leading in both Nandigram and Bhabanipore seats of West Bengal.

BJP has reached the halfway mark in early trends. It is leading on 148 seats in the states, indicating the state has switched. In Nandigram, Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP is leading.