Trinamool's clean sweep in the Bengal bypolls — it won all six seats — brought another wave of embarrassment for the BJP’s Bengal unit.

Some BJP veterans recommended an organisational overhaul to make the party more movement- and election-oriented in its fight against Mamata Banerjee’s party.

The Bengal BJP not only lost its stronghold Madarihat but also saw its vote share decline to 25.48% from 38.73% in the Lok Sabha held just six months ago.

In Sitai and Haroa, two minority-dominated constituencies, BJP candidates lost their deposits as they failed to secure one-sixth of the total votes polled.

Although many senior BJP leaders claimed the lack of a conducive environment due to TMC’s “oppression” as a key factor in the loss, discordant voices within the party highlighted the depth of embarrassment over the bypoll results.

Leader of the Opposition in the Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, who actively campaigned in at least three seats, stressed the need for a more poll- and movement-oriented approach to counter the TMC’s alleged corruption.

“What I understand is that our organisation needs to be more election-oriented, and the party’s Morchas (wings) need to be more movement-oriented. We must take to the streets against the anti-people, corrupt, and police-dependent TMC,” said Adhikari, confidently adding that the BJP would perform better in the 2026 Assembly elections.

Adhikari further claimed that the BJP would get four out of the six seats that voted on November 13, in the 2026 polls, except for Sitai and Haroa, which are minority-dominated.

“We lost Dhupguri in the bypoll, but had led by 20,000 votes from the same seat during the general elections earlier this year,” he added.

A BJP insider said that Adhikari was pushing for intensified grassroots political activities, arguing that the party’s current efforts are insufficient.

“As we lost Madarihat, our strength in the Assembly has reduced by one. This is obviously concerning for the leader of the Opposition,” said the source.

In the 2021 Assembly polls, the BJP entered the Assembly with 77 MLAs. However, over the past three years, several BJP legislators defected to the TMC, and the party failed to win any seats in the recent by-polls. At present, the BJP holds about 67 seats in the Assembly, while the TMC’s tally has risen to 226.

Dilip Ghosh, the former BJP state president credited with delivering a record number of 18 seats to the Narendra Modi government from Bengal in the 2019 general elections, also called for a reassessment of the party’s strategy.

“Our performance hasn’t been well in both the Lok Sabha elections and the bypolls. The party must rethink its approach to elections and organisational strategies,” Ghosh said, assuring that the BJP would regroup and fight back strongly in the 2026 Assembly elections.

In the 2019 general elections, the BJP had won 18 out of 42 Lok Sabha seats in Bengal, but in 2024, the number of BJP MPs dropped to 12.

BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar downplayed the poor performance, expressing optimism about the 2026 Assembly elections. “This result is specific to the (November 13) bypolls, and I can say that the BJP will come to power in the 2026 Assembly elections. For example, we lost the Kaliaganj bypoll in 2019 but won the seat in the 2021 Assembly elections and secured a significant lead in the Lok Sabha polls,” Majumdar said.

Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh mocked Majumdar’s claims. “The BJP will not come to power in Bengal even in 3026,” he said.