Suvendu eyes Bengal sweep: Can TMC, Congress unite to challenge BJP?

"We are set to win 42 out of 42 in the 2029 Lok Sabha election." West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari had made this grandiose claim even before the Nandigram and Rejinagar bypoll results. A visibly buoyant Adhikari reiterated the target after his party swept both seats. Victories in both constituencies were expected, yet the margins, particularly in Rejinagar, where roughly 70% of voters are Muslim, came as a revelation. With the all-important Kolkata and Howrah municipal polls likely to be held in late November, there is a perception that the BJP may win handsomely. It is up to the Opposition to put up a spirited fight.Bypolls have usually favoured the ruling partyWhat may give the Opposition some solace is the fact that bypolls, at least over the last decade or so, have followed an extremely predictable pattern in Bengal.