Assembly elections: BJP Extends Lead in Bengal; Tamil Nadu Sees Triangular Contest

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, May 4, 2026: Counting of votes for the Assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry began on Monday, with early trends showing the BJP widening its lead over the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, while Tamil Nadu witnessed a keen triangular contest among the TVK, DMK and AIADMK alliances.

In West Bengal, where polling was held for 294 seats, the main contest is between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The election gained significance amid a heated controversy over the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which removed around 89 lakh names from the voter list.

In Tamil Nadu, votes were counted for 234 Assembly constituencies, witnessing a triangular contest among actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), the ruling DMK-led alliance, and the AIADMK-BJP alliance.

In Assam, the BJP is aiming for a third consecutive term in the 126-member Assembly.

Kerala witnessed a fierce contest between the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in the 140-seat Assembly. Exit polls had predicted an advantage for the UDF, while the BJP-led NDA sought to improve its presence in the state.

In Puducherry, where elections were held for 30 seats, the AINRC led by Chief Minister N Rangaswamy is seeking a second straight term.

Meanwhile, one of the closely watched contests in West Bengal is from Bhabanipur constituency, where BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari was leading Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in early trends. Adhikari had defeated Banerjee in Nandigram in the previous Assembly election by a narrow margin, forcing her to contest from Bhabanipur later to retain her place in the Assembly.