The 2026 West Bengal Assembly Election is changing fast. Having displayed the rapid change in terms of direction by counting trends recently, Mamata Banerjee is reaching out to the TMC workers and counting agents to convey a message.
Mamata had observed early counting trends indicating an increase in the presence of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in certain constituencies, and if the BJP is alert, she told party workers in counting centres that their only chance is to remain safe and, should they ever again venture to leave counting centres.
TMC chief said during the counting process, the BJP and central agencies tried to tamper with perception in a video message posted by the chief’s X profile. She told counting agents and party candidates alike to remain in the counting centres until the last round. “I plead to all of our counting agents and candidates that no one should leave the counting centres.
It is the BJP’s plan,” Mamata Banerjee said in that video. She had previously warned party workers that the BJP would try to project early leads strategically over the initial few rounds of counting. Mamata said BJP’s leads were being encouraged, and TMC's advances in the later rounds were receiving less attention.
In nearly 100 constituencies, the counting had slowed or even stopped during two or three rounds, she said, causing suspicion among her party workers. The Election Commission and central security forces were also said to have acted unfairly on counting, the Chief Minister added.
As part of what is a general campaign, she said the offices of the Trinamool Congress were targeted and damaged and forcefully occupied in certain areas, while misinformation was being spread to demoralise party supporters. “They are peddling completely false news. And even if we are in the lead, we aren’t reporting it the right way.
The Election Commission is following whatever central forces tell them to do,” Mamata said in her message. While early trends indeed appeared to favour the BJP in the counting rounds for some seats, Mamata Banerjee said this was likely to change further ahead. She stressed to the party workers that they would consider the huge number of counting rounds remaining and urged them not to lose hope.
"Fourteen to eighteen rounds of counting are still outstanding," she said. "We will win after sunset,” she declared tearfully, telling TMC supporters to “fight like tiger cubs.” The video was shared quickly and went viral, triggering debate, further fueling one of the most toxic political cultures in West Bengal.
জরুরি বার্তা pic.twitter.com/Uc82oihwEL
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) May 4, 2026
TMC backing for Mamata’s tough stand and resolve, BJP Party officials argued that they were nothing but excuses ready to sell before elections to win the poll. The 2026 West Bengal Assembly Election turned into one of the most contested political games in all modern West Bengal and has become the battleground for the prestige of both the BJP and the TMC.
The rivalry had been on a roller coaster earlier in the month, with party leaders more tightly competing within several districts and party workers and supporters raising their tensions and spending more time watching the election. The statement by Mamata Banerjee, she said, reflected rising concern within the TMC camp that the BJP had made surprising gains in several places.
But analysts also warned that the Bengal elections could see the counting of the postal and rural segments turning into full rounds as counting of all elements comes out even in these districts, which are generally near full count counts of postal votes during all elections, and that the Bengal elections are most prone to count sensitivity.
Concern over post-result confrontations and political violence has resulted in more rigorous security policies all across West Bengal. Central and state police troops are still positioned around counting centres and vulnerable neighbourhoods, securing the districts with law and order while counting runs.
“And as Bengal continues as an intriguing point of the last phase of the struggle for a seat at the state table, Mamata Banerjee’s message has once again underlined the issue of high stakes and the acrimony politically over the outcome of the final phase of the results in the state,” the media reports.
