Bengal BJP MPs Babul Supriyo and Debasree Chaudhuri were inducted into the Narendra Modi government on Thursday as junior ministers.

Supriyo, junior minister of heavy industries and public enterprises in the previous NDA government, won a second time in a prestige battle against Moon Moon Sen from Asansol where Trinamul had left no stone unturned to wrest the seat from the BJP.

Debasree, who has an RSS background, was chosen as a representative from north Bengal where she won in a four-cornered contest in Raiganj, sources said.

Although there was curiosity over the past few days on how many ministers Bengal would get after the BJP won 18 of the state’s 42 seats — a jump of 16 over 2014 — the induction of only two left the state BJP camp unhappy.

Babul Supriyo greets Modi and other BJP leaders after taking oath in Delhi on Thursday. Picture by Prem Singh

“Not even a single cabinet rank minister from Bengal?” asked a senior state BJP leader after 25 cabinet ministers, nine ministers of state with independent charge and 24 ministers of state were sworn in as members of Modi’s ministry.

“We were expecting at least three ministers, including one cabinet minister, from the state. We hope that in the future, the state will get some more ministers, like in the last NDA government that had started with no minister from Bengal but later, the two (state) MPs were inducted,” said a BJP leader.

The other sore point was the junior ministers status for Supriyo and Debasree. “If the party is focusing on Bengal keeping the next (2021) Assembly elections in mind, a couple of ministers should have been included in the cabinet to send the message that the BJP cares for the state,” said a BJP leader.

As a partner in the UPA-II government, Mamata Banerjee had ensured a number of Trinamul leaders became ministers at the Centre in 2009, two years before the Assembly polls of 2011 in which she came to power in Bengal.

Mamata was given the rail portfolio and six other MPs from Trinamul were made junior ministers in 2009. Trinamul had won 19 seats in the 2009 polls.

“Mamata had reaped benefits by announcing a series of projects for Bengal… We could have taken the same path,” a BJP leader said.

On Thursday, not just the number, the selection of the ministers also caused heartburn in sections of the state BJP because of omission of leaders like Locket Chatterjee and state chief Dilip Ghosh.

Sources said most in the party’s Bengal unit had expected Locket, an actress-turned-MP, and Ghosh to make the cut. Both Locket, the president of the party’s women’s wing, and Ghosh had played key roles in the party’s movements across the state. Ghosh was elected an MP this time.

“Whenever there were attacks on our party workers, leaders like Dilipda and Locket would rush to the spots. Babul was hardly seen in party activities in the state and most people in the party hardly know Debasreedi,” said a source.

Locket stayed away from the swearing-in. Sources said she had been invited to the event. Attempts to contact her drew a blank as her cellphone went unanswered.