Electoral Heat in West Bengal, Mamata’s Direct Confrontation with the Centre

January 12, 2026

Abhishek Vij

As the electoral temperature rises in West Bengal, the long-standing conflict between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the central government has resurfaced. This time, Mamata Banerjee’s direct confrontation with the Centre is over the Election Commission and the Central Enforcement Directorate (ED).

On Saturday, Mamata Didi wrote a two-page letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, alleging harassment of ordinary citizens in West Bengal under the guise of a special intensive revision (SIR) of voter lists. She wrote, “Human sensitivity was lacking during the SIR process. 77 deaths, 4 suicide attempts, and 17 people falling ill were a result of the SIR process. This process was conducted by the Election Commission without any preparation.”

Mamata Banerjee clearly alleged that it is unfortunate that elderly and respected people like Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, as well as dignitaries, sportspersons, writers, and senior MPs, were asked to prove their identity. Mamata Banerjee’s conflict with the Enforcement Directorate began this week when, on Friday, January 8, the ED raided the house and office of Prateek Jain, head of the Trinamool Congress IT cell. Mamata Didi considered this action an interference and reached the spot to protest.

Allegations even surfaced that she took a file with her. While the ED accused Mamata Banerjee of obstructing the work of a government agency and took the matter to court, Mamata Banerjee also filed two FIRs against the ED. She led a march on the streets of Kolkata with her party leaders, workers, and supporters. She said that if forced, she would jump into the fray like a lioness. She accused the Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari, of channeling money from the coal scam to Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Strongly objecting to this, Suvendu Adhikari has sent a legal notice to the Chief Minister and demanded a reply within 72 hours. Suvendu has said that if a reply is not received, he will file a defamation case against the Chief Minister. The conflict between the Centre and Mamata Banerjee is nothing new.

Even before this, Mamata has clashed with the Centre more than half a dozen times over central agencies. Currently, the ED and the Election Commission are in her crosshairs. Call it bravado or political accusation, but Mamata Didi has also claimed that she has a pen drive full of evidence against the Union Home Minister, which she will make public. Clearly, all these developments are a result of the increasing tension surrounding the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal.

The NDA is making every effort to create an anti-government wave in West Bengal this time and remove Mamata Banerjee from power. The NDA accuses Mamata of sheltering infiltrators and engaging in Muslim appeasement, while Mamata Banerjee alleges that the central government has taken control of all government agencies and is using them against the West Bengal government. See what kind of games politics plays. The accusation that the Enforcement Directorate is a puppet of the Centre is an old one, which opposition parties in the states repeat during every election, but now Union Home Minister Amit Shah has also been accused in the coal scam. It seems that the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal will be held in a heated atmosphere.