Behind Mamata meeting BJP’s RS MP Ananta Maharaj, TMC’s Rajbanshi outreach, bid to gain ground in North Bengal

Despite putting up an impressive performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal, the northern parts of the state remained out of bounds for the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).

However, there was a silver lining for the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led party. For the lone seat the TMC managed to win in the region this time — Cooch Behar, where Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia defeated BJP candidate and former Union minister Nisith Pramanik — happens to be the constituency where the state’s Rajbanshi voters are concentrated.

On Tuesday, during her North Bengal visit to meet Kanchanjungha Express passengers who were injured in Monday’s railway accident, Mamata made an “unplanned” detour from Siliguri to meet BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ananta Maharaj at his home at Chakchaka in Cooch Behar. The meeting, which lasted for around 35 minutes, immediately fuelled speculation of the prominent Rajbanshi leader joining the TMC in the aftermath of the BJP’s defeat in the Cooch Behar seat. With the state Assembly elections slated for 2026, such a buzz gained momentum, especially in light of the TMC’s past induction spree after every major election in the state.

However, both Mamata and Maharaj remained silent on the subject of their meeting. Afterwards, Maharaj said, “I’m a BJP MP. Why would I join the TMC? About the future, I don’t know what will happen.”

Earlier, accompanied by sports minister Aroop Biswas, North Bengal development minister Udayan Guha and newly-elected Cooch Behar MP Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia, Mamata began her North Bengal tour in Siliguri where she met the victims of the train accident or their families.

She then reached Cooch Behar town, where she first offered prayers at the local Madan Mohan mandir.