Koel Mallick joins BJP, to file RS nomination for seat she vacated
Synopsis
Koel Mallick has done what three of her former TMC colleagues already did — resigned from the Rajya Sabha seat the TMC gave her, then walked straight into the BJP to reclaim it. With the bypoll on 16 October and the BJP now commanding West Bengal's Assembly, her return to Parliament under the saffron banner looks all but certain.
Key Takeaways
Koel Mallick (Rukmini Mallick) officially joined the BJP at its Salt Lake office on 5 October 2026 .
She is set to file her Rajya Sabha nomination the same day for the seat she vacated in July .
The Rajya Sabha bypoll is scheduled for 16 October 2026 .
She resigned after the TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, following a pattern set by Sukhendu Sekhar Roy , Sushmita Dev , and Prakash Chik Baraik .
Mallick reportedly did not attend a single Parliament session during her tenure as a TMC Rajya Sabha member.
Her post-resignation meeting with Union Minister Bhupender Yadav in New Delhi had signalled the switch weeks in advance.
Actress-turned-politician Koel Mallick (formally Rukmini Mallick) officially joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday, 5 October 2026, at the party's state office in Salt Lake, Kolkata, marking the culmination of months of speculation about her political future. The former All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha member is set to file her nomination for the very Upper House seat she vacated earlier this year.
Formal Induction at Salt Lake Office
BJP state general secretary Shashi Agnihotri formally handed over the party flag to Mallick at the BJP state office in Salt Lake. Also present were the party's media department convener Anupam Ghosh and co-convener Chandrashekhar Basotia.
Mallick expressed her intent clearly at the event. 'In the last few months, West Bengal has been going through a journey of development. We want more work to be done in West Bengal. I want to be involved in the development of West Bengal. I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi and West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari for nominating me as a Rajya Sabha candidate for the party. I will be filing my nomination today,' she said. Notably, she declined to make any adverse remarks about her former party, the TMC, led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
The Bypoll and Its Timeline
The BJP had announced Mallick's name as its candidate on Sunday for the forthcoming Rajya Sabha bypoll, scheduled for 16 October. Her nomination papers are to be filed at the West Bengal Assembly on Monday. The seat in question is the same one she resigned from in July this year, following the trend set by other erstwhile TMC Rajya Sabha members who defected to the BJP.
A Pattern of TMC-to-BJP Switches
Mallick's defection follows an established pattern after the Trinamool Congress lost the West Bengal Assembly elections earlier this year. Former TMC Rajya Sabha members Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Sushmita Dev, and Prakash Chik Baraik were the first to resign and subsequently win re-election as BJP candidates from the very seats they had vacated. Mallick resigned from her Rajya Sabha position on 16 July, when she met Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairperson C.P. Radhakrishnan in New Delhi to submit her resignation.
Shortly after resigning, she met Union Minister Bhupender Yadav — a meeting that fuelled widespread speculation about her joining the BJP. This is the fourth such instance of a former TMC Upper House member resigning and potentially returning to Parliament under the BJP banner.
Background: Her Rajya Sabha Tenure
Mallick was originally fielded by the TMC for the Rajya Sabha elections held in March this year, alongside former West Bengal Police Director General Rajeev Kumar, singer-turned-politician Babul Supriyo, and Supreme Court senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy. According to reports, she did not attend a single session of Parliament during her tenure as a TMC member — a fact that critics noted even before her defection.
What Comes Next
With the bypoll set for 16 October, Mallick is widely expected to win given the BJP's numerical strength in the West Bengal Assembly following the party's electoral sweep. Her entry into the Rajya Sabha as a BJP member would reinforce the party's Upper House tally from the state and further consolidate the post-election realignment of West Bengal's political landscape.
Point of View
Cross the floor, reclaim the same seat in BJP colours — and Mallick is simply the fourth car on that belt. What the episode underscores is how transactional upper-house nominations have become in West Bengal: Mallick reportedly never attended a single Parliament session as a TMC member, yet both parties found her nomination-worthy. The real question is whether the BJP's Bengal expansion can translate Rajya Sabha gains into durable grassroots support, or whether it remains an elite-level realignment that leaves the ground game unchanged.
NationPress
5 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why has Koel Mallick joined the BJP?
Koel Mallick joined the BJP on 5 October 2026 following the Trinamool Congress's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, mirroring moves by at least three other former TMC Rajya Sabha members who switched to BJP and were re-elected from the same seats they vacated. She cited her desire to contribute to West Bengal's development under the BJP-led framework.
When is the Rajya Sabha bypoll for Koel Mallick's vacated seat?
The Rajya Sabha bypoll for the seat vacated by Koel Mallick is scheduled for 16 October 2026. She filed her nomination papers at the West Bengal Assembly on 5 October 2026 as the BJP's official candidate.
Which other TMC Rajya Sabha members switched to the BJP before Koel Mallick?
Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Sushmita Dev, and Prakash Chik Baraik were the first three former TMC Rajya Sabha members to resign and subsequently win re-election as BJP candidates from the same vacated seats. Mallick is the fourth such instance, having resigned in July 2026.
What was Koel Mallick's record as a Rajya Sabha member under the TMC?
According to reports, Koel Mallick did not attend a single session of Parliament during her tenure as a TMC Rajya Sabha member after being elected in March this year. She resigned from the seat in July 2026, meeting Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan to submit her resignation.
Who welcomed Koel Mallick into the BJP at the formal induction?
BJP state general secretary Shashi Agnihotri handed over the party flag to Mallick at the BJP state office in Salt Lake, Kolkata. Media department convener Anupam Ghosh and co-convener Chandrashekhar Basotia were also present at the event.
