NEW DELHI: Union minister and former West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar on Monday said that under the TMC’s rule, “rapid demographic changes” could make Hindus a minority in several districts, making it “very difficult” for Hindu candidates to win elections in the future. Speaking to the media, Majumdar said the BJP has recalibrated its strategy after failing to come to power in the 2021 assembly elections. The party is now focusing on strengthening booth-level organisation, promoting a more “Bengal-centric” narrative, and revising electoral rolls through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), which he believes could alter the electoral arithmetic. Majumdar described the 2026 assembly polls as a demographic turning point for West Bengal. “The census has not happened yet, but Mamata Banerjee herself said Muslims constitute around 33 per cent of the population. It could be 33–35 per cent. This percentage will increase in the next five years. After that, it will become very difficult for Hindus to win elections,” he said. He added, “The TMC will gradually be forced to give more tickets to Muslims instead of Hindus due to the change in demography. You can already hear demands for a Muslim deputy CM. These demands will be fulfilled in future, and eventually that could lead to a Muslim chief minister.” Drawing historical parallels, Majumdar referred to communal violence during Partition and the Great Calcutta Killing when the Muslim League was in power. He alleged that demographic changes in border districts are altering West Bengal’s political landscape, creating challenges for the BJP if the Muslim community votes overwhelmingly against it. Majumdar said the election is not only about identity politics but also about governance and development in the state. “There has been no major investment in 15 years. Gujarat gets around 17 per cent of India’s FDI, while West Bengal gets only 0.66 per cent. There is no development, no investment, the fiscal health of the state is poor, and the education system is declining,” he said. He said the BJP is relying on consolidation among Bengali Hindu voters and growing disillusionment with the TMC. “Hindus now understand that if they want to survive in West Bengal, they must remove this government,” he said. Majumdar also claimed that fundamentalist influences are growing, especially along the Bangladesh border, and added, “A large portion of West Bengal is already under the influence of criminals, fundamentalists and fanatics.” Regarding Islamist-leaning political groups, he said the BJP, if elected, would take “necessary measures” against unrecognised madrassas allegedly involved in communal activities. Majumdar highlighted that the party has strengthened booth-level organisation and adopted a more Bengali-focused campaign strategy. “If there were organisational weaknesses, we wouldn’t have had 38–39 per cent vote share. The contest in Bengal is bipolar and many seats were decided by very narrow margins,” he said. He pointed out that nearly 40 seats in 2021 were decided by margins below 5,000 votes, and several others within 8,000 votes. He claimed that the ongoing revision of electoral rolls has removed thousands of “dead or invalid” voters, which could affect close contests. “If you analyse 2021, you will see that in many Muslim-dominated booths turnout was above 90 per cent, sometimes even 98 or 99 per cent. In 14 booths the turnout was 100 per cent,” he said. On the TMC’s criticism of the SIR exercise, Majumdar dismissed the claims, saying, “There is no damage. As soon as the list came out, our workers started helping people fill up Form 6. Eligible voters will get their names added.” Unlike the TMC, led by Mamata Banerjee, the BJP has not projected a chief ministerial candidate for the polls. “Why should we play on Mamata Banerjee’s pitch? If India prepares a pace pitch against Australia in Mohali, India will lose. The BJP plays a team game,” he said, referring to the party’s success in Delhi and Odisha without projecting a CM candidate. Majumdar added that the BJP is fielding Suvendu Adhikari from Bhabanipur, Mamata Banerjee’s constituency, as part of its strategy to take her head-on. “We want to defeat Mamata directly,” he said.