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Kolkata: The ruling TMC on Tuesday, March 17, announced its list of candidates for the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections, with party supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee declaring that the party will contest 291 of the 294 seats in the state.

Banerjee will be contesting polls from Kolkata’s Bhabanipur constituency, pitting her against her former aide and Bharatiya Janata Party’s Suvendu Adhikari, setting the stage for an intense political battle.

This will be the second time the two leaders will face off against each other in the Assembly polls, the last time being in 2021.

The BJP had announced on Monday that Adhikari would contest the Assembly elections not only from his own Nandigram constituency but also from Kolkata’s Bhabanipur constituency, currently represented by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Meanwhile, the remaining three seats in the Darjeeling hills left out by TMC will be contested by Anit Thapa-led Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM).

“We will contest 291 of the 294 seats. The remaining three seats will be contested by our ally, Anit Thapa-led BGPM, in the Darjeeling hills,” Banerjee said, during a press conference in Kolkata, flanked by the party’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and state president Subrata Bakshi.

Mamata confident of winning 226 seats, decreasing BJP’s tally

Banerjee expressed confidence that the TMC would retain power with a comfortable majority in the 2026 assembly elections.

“We will win more than 226 seats in the 2026 assembly polls,” she asserted.

The chief minister also sought to reassure party leaders and workers who could not find a place in the candidate list, saying they would be accommodated in the organisation.

“All those who could not be accommodated in the candidate list will be accommodated in the organisation,” she said.

Targeting the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, Banerjee said the saffron party would see its numbers decline in the upcoming polls.

“The BJP’s tally will decrease in this election. They will receive a befitting reply for their anti-people policies,” she said.

The announcement of the candidates sets the stage for an intense electoral contest in West Bengal, where the TMC is seeking to return to power for a fourth consecutive term.

(With inputs from agencies.)