The BJP on Friday secured a victory in both the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls by a large margin amid a debacle of both the Trinamool Congress (TMC) factions, while the Congress seemed to have gained some ground. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and Janata Unnayan Party (JUP) leader Humayun Kabir had vacated the two seats, necessitating the byelections.

In Rejinagar, the Mamata-led TMC got 1.87% of votes, while the Democratic-TMC secured only 0.99% vote share. This is in contrast to the TMC’s 46.55% and 17.43% vote share in Nandigram and Rejinagar in the April 2026 Assembly elections.

Congress gains ground

In the Nandigram bypoll, the Democratic-TMC candidate got only 0.39% of votes even as Mamata-led TMC candidate Sanchita De Pradhan had withdrawn her nomination at the last moment. On the other hand, the runner-up candidate from the seat, Congress’ Milan Pradhan, got 19.25% of votes, as compared to the party’s vote share of 0.31% in the Assembly polls.

In the Rejinagar constituency also, the Congress increased its vote share from 1.71% to 3%. In both seats, the Left Front also gained a little vote share. In Nandigram, the CPI’s vote share increased from 1.19% to 2.67%. In Rejinagar, the CPIM got 1.85% of votes.

Most significantly, the BJP won Rejinagar where minority votes are around 70%. On the other hand, in Nandigram-I block, majority votes are Muslim.

TMC factions decimated

Twenty of the 29 MPs and at least 60 of the 80 MLAs of the TMC had left the party after its debacle in the Assembly polls. Led by Ritabrata Banerjee, the new faction got the name Democratic-TMC (DTMC) from the Election Commission, while Mamata’s faction was given the name Mamata-TMC (MTMC).

After Friday’s victory from both seats, CM Adhikari said he had announced Friendship Day, and the minority community had responded. In the upcoming civic body elections, people will vote for the BJP, he said.

Congress state president Shuvankar Sarkar said the party had demanded the cancellation of the elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar, but the ECI did not respond to the request. He accused the BJP of stealing the people’s rights and said the BJP was scared of Congress.

Youth Congress leader Ketan Jaiswal said the gradual emergence of Congress as Bengal’s principal opposition party was leading to multi-pronged attacks by the BJP government, claiming the party was facing suppression from the grassroots to social media. Kalyan Banerjee, an MP from the Mamata-led TMC, said the party had received its symbol at the very last moment and could not introduce it to voters effectively, adding that its committed voters in Nandigram had voted for Congress since the party had supported Congress there. He welcomed the Congress’ gains and said the fight ahead would be as part of the INDIA alliance. Democratic-TMC leader and MLA Arup Roy also did not deny the Congress’ claim.