New Delhi

Suvendu Adhikari, Leader of Opposition in West Bengal, will contest from the Nandigram Assembly constituency and the Bhabanipur Assembly constituency, according to the first list of 144 candidates released by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday for the upcoming state assembly elections.

Adhikari had defeated Mamata Banerjee in the 2021 Assembly elections from Nandigram. Bhabanipur is currently represented by Banerjee, the chief of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC).

Polling in the state will be conducted in two phases — April 23 and April 29 — with counting of votes scheduled for May 4, setting the stage for a high-stakes contest between the BJP and the ruling TMC.

Among other candidates announced by the BJP, MLA Agnimitra Paul will contest from the Asansol Dakshin Assembly constituency, while actor-turned-politician Rudranil Ghosh will contest from the Shibpur Assembly constituency. BJP MLA Bankim Chandra Ghosh has been fielded from the Chakdaha Assembly constituency.

The state has a total of 294 seats in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, and the party is expected to announce the remaining candidates soon.

According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), the first phase of the elections covering 152 Assembly constituencies will begin with the issuance of the gazette notification on March 30, 2026. The last date for filing nominations for this phase is April 6, while scrutiny will take place on April 7. Candidates can withdraw their nominations until April 9. Voting for the first phase will be held on April 23.

For the second phase, covering 142 Assembly constituencies, the gazette notification will be issued on April 2. The last date for filing nominations is April 9, and scrutiny of nominations will take place on April 10. Candidates will be able to withdraw their nominations until April 13. Polling for this phase will be conducted on April 29.

West Bengal has a total electorate of 6,45,61,152 voters, including 6,44,52,609 general electors and 1,08,543 service voters, according to the Election Commission.

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The voter list also includes 5,23,229 young electors aged between 18 and 19 years. Additionally, 4,16,089 electors are marked as persons with disabilities, 1,152 are identified as third gender voters, and 3,78,979 are senior citizens aged 85 years and above.