Some of the closest battles saw the BJP lose Ramgarh to the BSP by just 30 votes, Dhaka to the RJD by 178 votes, and Forbesganj to the Congress by a margin of only 221. These narrow setbacks came despite the overall electoral wave favouring the NDA.

The Bharatiya Janata Party's emphatic triumph in Bihar has sparked a wave of jubilation and renewed ambition among the saffron party's Bengal ranks, with leaders and workers openly declaring that the results next door have laid the path to power in West Bengal.

Singh, who joined the BJP in 2014, months after retiring as the Union home secretary, has been critical of leaders like Samrat Choudhary, a deputy CM of Bihar and a former state BJP chief, for their alleged involvement in criminal cases.

Since PM Modi came to power at the Centre in 2014, the BJP has been looking to expand its footprint in states where it is not in power, particularly West Bengal. In the 2016 West Bengal elections, the saffron party fielded candidates on 291 seats but managed to secure victory on just three of them.

KOLKATA/LUCKNOW: After the NDA’s grand victory in the Bihar Assembly elections, the BJP hopes that the results will set the tone for West Bengal polls next year

The former diplomat and renowned author said people decided to "consolidate the existing forces" to stop the return of RJD's "Jungle Raaj," which also harmed the Prashant Kishor's party.

This special report examines the political landscape of West Bengal following the BJP's recent victory in Bihar, featuring a debate between BJP spokesperson R P Singh and Trinamool Congress spokesperson Tauseef Rehman.

NDA has swept the Bihar 2025 election, which also means Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is likely to take oath again, making this his fifth consecutive term. But because the BJP has seen a dramatic surge in its seats this time, rumours are naturally surfacing about whether the party might want its own face to replace Kumar.