Bengal BJP sets up KMC, HMC poll committees ahead of year-end civic elections
Synopsis
With KMC wards expanding from 144 to 209 and HMC wards from 50 to 68, the BJP's early committee formations in West Bengal are less about routine housekeeping and more about staking a claim in urban terrain where TMC has long held the upper hand. Sukanta Majumdar heading the KMC push gives it a national-profile anchor.
Key Takeaways
West Bengal BJP announced poll committees for KMC and HMC elections on 25 August .
Sukanta Majumdar , Union Minister of State for Education, will head the four-member KMC committee.
Former national secretary and Rajya Sabha member Rahul Sinha leads the two-member HMC committee.
KMC wards will expand from 144 to 209 and HMC wards from 50 to 68 after delimitation.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by national general secretary Sunil Bansal at Salt Lake .
The West Bengal unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday, 25 August announced the formation of dedicated committees to steer its organisational campaign for the upcoming Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) elections, both scheduled before the end of this year. The move signals the party's intent to mount a structured challenge in two of West Bengal's most politically significant urban bodies.
KMC Committee: Who Leads It
Union Minister of State for Education and former West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar will head the four-member KMC election committee. State vice-president Raju Bandopadhyay has been named co-in-charge. Tapas Roy, a party legislator also serving as West Bengal's Commerce and Industries Minister, is the convener, while Ritesh Tiwari, legislator from the Cossipore-Belgachia constituency in North Kolkata, is the co-convener.
HMC Committee: Separate Two-Member Panel
For the Howrah Municipal Corporation polls, the BJP has constituted a leaner two-member committee. Former national secretary and Rajya Sabha member Rahul Sinha has been named in-charge, with legislator Sanjay Singh as co-in-charge.
Key Meeting at Salt Lake Headquarters
The decisions were taken at a high-level meeting held at the BJP's state headquarters in Salt Lake, chaired by Sunil Bansal, the party's national general secretary and central observer for West Bengal. State general secretary (organisation) Amitabha Chakraborty and Majumdar represented the state leadership. BJP legislators from the Kolkata region also attended the session.
Ward Delimitation Changes the Battleground
This year's KMC and HMC polls will be conducted after a significant delimitation of wards. Under the proposed redrawing, KMC wards will increase from 144 to 209, while HMC wards will rise from 50 to 68. The expanded ward count substantially enlarges the organisational challenge for all contesting parties, requiring fresh booth-level groundwork across dozens of new segments. Notably, the BJP's committee formations come well ahead of the election schedule, suggesting the party is prioritising early mobilisation in a municipal landscape long dominated by the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Point of View
Senior-led committees months before the KMC and HMC polls is a tactical acknowledgement that urban West Bengal requires structured groundwork, not last-minute mobilisation. Placing a Union minister at the head of the KMC panel raises the political stakes — if the BJP underperforms, the accountability trail leads directly to Delhi. The ward delimitation, expanding KMC from 144 to 209 seats, is a double-edged factor: more seats mean more opportunity, but also more organisational bandwidth than the party has historically deployed in Kolkata. Whether the committee structure translates into booth-level presence — the real determinant in municipal contests — remains the open question.
NationPress
25 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Which committees has the BJP formed for KMC and HMC polls in West Bengal?
The BJP has formed a four-member committee for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) polls, headed by Union Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar, and a two-member committee for the Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) polls, led by Rajya Sabha member Rahul Sinha. Both were announced on 25 August.
When are the KMC and HMC elections scheduled?
Both the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Howrah Municipal Corporation elections are scheduled to be held by the end of this year, according to the BJP's announcement.
How will ward delimitation affect the KMC and HMC polls?
Under the proposed delimitation, KMC wards will increase from 144 to 209 and HMC wards from 50 to 68. The polls will be conducted under the new ward boundaries, significantly expanding the electoral map for all parties.
Who chaired the BJP meeting where these committees were decided?
The meeting was chaired by Sunil Bansal, BJP's national general secretary and central observer for West Bengal, at the party's state headquarters in Salt Lake, Kolkata.
Who are the key members of the BJP's KMC election committee?
The KMC committee comprises Sukanta Majumdar (in-charge), Raju Bandopadhyay (co-in-charge), Tapas Roy (convener), and Ritesh Tiwari (co-convener), covering senior state and central BJP leadership.
