Just five years ago, Suvendu Adhikari was one of Mamata Banerjee’s most trusted political allies. He was known as an important face of the state’s ruling party, the Trinamool Congress.
But within a short period of time, that political relationship turned into a fierce rivalry. Finally, Suvendu Adhikari defeated Mamata Banerjee in the elections and took oath as the new Chief Minister of West Bengal.
He formally took charge as the Chief Minister at a ceremony held at the Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata on Saturday, marking the beginning of a new chapter in West Bengal politics.
An analysis by the Indian media outlet Outlook India states that Subhendu Adhikari’s political identity is mainly due to three reasons – his leadership in the Nandigram movement, his political conflict with Mamata Banerjee, and his leaving the Trinamool Congress to join the BJP.
The rise of the Nandigram movement
In 2007, the then Left Front government of West Bengal took the initiative to acquire land for the construction of an industrial estate in Nandigram. Shuvendu was at the forefront of the movement against that decision. He became known to the locals as the ‘Hero of Nandigram’.
This movement shook the foundations of the long-standing Left rule in the state, and in 2011, the Trinamool Congress came to power for the first time under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee.
The rise of grassroots and the beginning of distance
Coming from a political family, Subhendu’s father, Shishir Adhikari, was also an influential politician. The family was initially associated with the politics of the Indian National Congress but later joined the Trinamool Congress.
Shuvendu was first elected as a Member of Parliament from the Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency in 2009. He won the same seat in 2014. Later, in 2016, he left his position as a Member of Parliament and contested and won from the Nandigram Assembly constituency. After that, Mamata Banerjee gave him important responsibilities like the state’s Transport and Irrigation ministries.
From 2016 to 2020, Subhendu was considered the most influential leader in the Trinamool Congress after Mamata. However, over time, the distance within the party increased. He especially expressed dissatisfaction with the increasing influence of Mamata’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
Yoga and political turn in BJP
After much speculation, Subhendu Adhikari resigned from all Trinamool Congress posts in December 2020. He also resigned from his state government ministry. Later, he officially joined the BJP in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
He then contested against Mamata Banerjee in the 2021 assembly elections from Nandigram constituency. In that highly competitive election, Shuvendu won by a margin of nearly two thousand votes.
The political equation changed in the recent elections as well. In addition to defeating Mamata Banerjee by a large margin from the Bhavanipur constituency, the BJP formed the government in West Bengal for the first time by winning 207 seats in the 294-seat assembly.
According to political analysts, the rise of Subhendu Adhikari, from one of the Trinamool’s organizers to the face of the BJP, has become a symbol of a major change in West Bengal politics.