West Bengal CM claims 275 MLAs would back BJP in a floor test

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Wednesday (October 21, 2026) that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would secure the support of 275 MLAs in the 294-member West Bengal Legislative Assembly if a floor test were held.

Speaking to reporters, Mr. Adhikari said 64 legislators elected on Trinamool Congress tickets were ready to back him in such a vote. “If you have a floor test in the Assembly tomorrow, we will get the support of 275 MLAs. Among them, 64 are ready to raise their hands in our support,” he said.

The BJP has 209 MLAs in the State Assembly after elections held earlier this year. The Trinamool Congress won 80 seats. About 65 of its MLAs later supported Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of Opposition and parted ways with Mamata Banerjee. The rebel group is now called the Democratic Trinamool Congress.

A floor test is a formal vote in which legislators indicate whether they support a government or a claimant to forming one. In a 294-member Assembly, a simple majority is 148. The Chief Minister’s remarks refer to a hypothetical floor test.

The statement drew sharp reactions from Opposition parties, including loyalists of Mamata Banerjee. Ms. Banerjee and her supporters have alleged that the BJP was behind the defections in her party.

Kunal Ghosh, spokesperson of the Mamata All India Trinamool Congress, said the Chief Minister’s remarks proved that the Ritabrata Banerjee loyalists were “nothing but agents of the BJP”.

CPI(M) leader Shatarup Ghosh said Mr. Adhikari’s remarks should be brought to the notice of the courts to remove Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of Opposition. Akhruzzaman, the Opposition Chief Whip and a member of the rebel faction, said the party’s policy was to keep an equal distance from all parties, including the BJP.

The political realignment in the State Assembly has coincided with changes within the Trinamool Congress. Mamata Banerjee has lost control over the party’s name and symbol, according to the report. Twenty Lok Sabha MPs of her party have merged with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).

The NCPI has asked Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla for a two-week extension, until November 3, 2026, to respond to a disqualification petition filed by the Mamata Banerjee-led faction.

The claimed figure of 275 is higher than the BJP’s current strength of 209 by 66. Mr. Adhikari cited 64 Trinamool legislators as willing to support the BJP. The report does not explain how the remaining support, or the total of 275, was calculated.

According to the report, the BJP has 209 MLAs and the Trinamool Congress won 80. The subsequent split has altered the effective strength of the Opposition in the House.

The remarks are part of an ongoing public dispute over the support base in the Assembly. Both the ruling party and the Opposition have made competing claims about legislative numbers, while the Mamata Banerjee-led faction has challenged the rebel group’s position in the House and in Parliament.