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Kolkata: Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s packed three-day visit to West Bengal from December 29 to 31 will mark a decisive shift for the Bharatiya Janata Party as it ramps up its campaign machinery for the 2026 Assembly elections. Arriving amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Shah’s itinerary—focused on high-stakes organisational meetings, strategy reviews, and subtle cultural outreach—signals the party’s intent to launch a major push to conquer its “unfinished project” in Bengal. With no public rallies planned, the visit will fulfil the strategic push towards internal consolidation and narrativebuilding, setting the electoral tempo early.
Shah will land in Kolkata on December 29 at 7 pm, heading straight to the BJP’s state office in Bidhannagar’s Sector V to assess organisational progress.
BJP sources describe the trip as a “closed-door stocktaking exercise,” with Shah chairing multiple meetings to review booth-level feedback, party preparedness, and the future roadmap. “This is less about closing the calendar year and more about opening a new, aggressive phase of political planning,” a senior Bengal BJP leader told Read, highlighting how the visit segues with recent high-level interventions like Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s December 20 trip and BJP general secretary Bhupender Yadav’s ongoing micro-strategy sessions since October.
The momentum will intensify on December 30. Shah is slated to hold a closeddoor meeting with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh functionaries, followed by a separate session with BJP MPs and MLAs at Kolkata’s Science City auditorium. BJP insiders say a “big bang” press conference is on the cards the same day, alongside a potential luncheon with senior journalists to shape the public discourse. Party insiders note that discussions will zero in on Assembly poll strategies and the SIR process, which has sparked controversy after the draft list’s publication.
Allegations of deletions, particularly affecting the Matua community, have drawn TMC fire, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leading an anti-SIR campaign. BJP sources expect the Union Home Minister to address voter concerns, counter TMC narratives, and replicate Bihar’s electoral playbook where stringent roll revisions aided their victory.
In order to ramp up visibility and extend the impact of the visit, Bengal BJP, through its Yuva Morcha, is planning a grand bike procession to welcome Shah, mobilising around 1,500 motorbikes from ten organisational districts including Kolkata, North and South 24 Parganas, Howrah, and Hooghly. Each district is targeting 500 bikes, with routes under deliberation—from Kolkata airport to New Town on December 29 night, or Newtown to the BJP office via VIP Road and EM Bypass on December 30 morning. “A large number of bikes with headlights on the airport-Newtown stretch would create a stronger visual impact,” one leader argued, while others favour daytime outreach. This marks a first for Shah’s frequent Bengal visits over the past 11 years, projecting organisational muscle without mass events.
On December 31, Shah may pay homage to Bengali icons, visiting the residences of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, author of “Vande Mataram”—whose 150th anniversary the Centre is celebrating nationally since November 7—and Sister Nivedita (Margaret Elizabeth Noble). Such moves blend cultural nationalism with electoral messaging.
Meanwhile, Bengal BJP’s internal discord is becoming public. Haringhata MLA Asim Sarkar’s viral audio clip criticising Union Minister Shantanu Thakur over SIR deletions has rattled the ranks. Sarkar was heard saying: “I am not agreeing with Thakurmashai. Not a single Matua name should be deleted. I am not agreeing with the MP.” Shantanu Thakur, head of the BJP-led Matua Mahasangha faction, had controversially stated he’d prefer “1 lakh Matua names deleted than let 50 lakh infiltrators stay.”
Sarkar’s past antics, like touching the feet of TMC rival Mamatabala Thakur, add fuel. Bengal BJP co-incharge Sunil Bansal held previsit meetings on Friday to smoothen feathers.
A senior party leader confided, “Differing voices have been forcing the party on a backfoot just before the poll campaign… such instances would also be discussed with Shah.” One-on-one sessions during the visit aim to forge poll roadmaps.
For BJP, West Bengal epitomises unfinished business. Noticeable since Narendra Modi’s 2014 rise, it eclipsed CPI(M) as the main opposition—winning 18 Lok Sabha seats in 2019 (from two in 2014) and 77 Assembly seats in 2021 (from three in 2016). Yet, 2024 Lok Sabha polls yielded 12 seats, and 2021 votes held at 34.78% against TMC’s 50.7%. “Bengal continues to be an unfinished dream,” sources say, eyeing power in a state long dominated by Left and now TMC.
Senior BJP leaders say Shah’s timing, even as the SIR initiative is on, amplifies the party’s intent to seriously try and defeat the Trinamool Congress.
With Bhupender Yadav, who helped engineer the win in Madhya Pradesh, a frequent visitor to the state, observers expect a sharpened tempo from 2026.
Party sources said efforts are on to extend Shah’s visit beyond Kolkata to weak 2021 districts like adjoining areas, though it is unlikely this time.
“The signals of Shah’s visit make it clear that the party’s top brass is ready to plunge into the political labyrinth long before the 2026 showdown,” said political commentator Biswanath Chakraborty.
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