Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s major Cabinet expansion on Monday saw the induction of several key leaders with RSS links into the new Council of Ministers.
By filling key Cabinet slots with leaders who rose straight through the ranks of its parent body, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the BJP has firmly anchored the new government in the party’s ideology.
For decades, these grassroots RSS workers operated quietly on the fringes of Bengal’s intense political landscape, building the party’s base block-by-block in tough border and rural areas. The new cabinet represents a mix of seasoned veterans who started in the 1970s and 80s, alongside qualified modern professionals who share the same ideological roots. The party has placed these battle-tested loyalists into key ministerial roles.
Here’s a look at some RSS-turned-BJP leaders sworn-in in the new Cabinet:
Tapas Roy (Cabinet Minister)
Spanning several decades and parties, Roy’s political journey started in 1996 when he was elected the Congress MLA from Vidyasagar. He then joined Mamata Banerjee’s then-newly formed TMC, securing legislative wins for the party in 2001, 2011, 2016, and 2021. He represented the Baranagar Assembly seat from 2011 to 2024, when he left the camp for the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, but lost the general elections to the TMC candidate.
In the 2026 Assembly polls, Roy won the Maniktala seat for the BJP, defeating TMC’s Shreya Pande. Following his win, he briefly served as the pro-tem Speaker, before taking oath as a minister.
Reflecting on his political career, Roy said his core aspiration was to end the TMC regime, remove Mamata Banerjee, and establish a BJP government in the state — a dream he feels has now been realised.
Dudh Kumar Mondal (Cabinet Minister)
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A prominent face of the BJP in Birbhum politics, RSS worker Mondal’s political journey began in 1988, after which he was elected to multiple offices in the local bodies polls. Mondal contested his first Assembly poll from Mayureswar in 2011 but lost to CPI(M)’s Ashok Roy. He took charge as the BJP’s Birbhum chief in 2015, but faced subsequent defeats in the 2016 Assembly as well as the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In the 2026 Assembly polls, Mondal finally won the Mayureswar Assembly seat. Speaking after taking oath on Monday, Mondal committed to executing the government’s directives to build a corruption-free administration and focus on developing the rural areas. The veteran leader also honoured the deceased party workers.
Gouri Shankar Ghosh (Cabinet Minister)
Associated with the RSS since his student days, Ghosh rose through the BJP’s organisational ranks, serving as a block president and later as district president of the undivided Murshidabad unit. He began his political journey in 2016 and, after an initial defeat, emerged as a two-time MLA from Murshidabad seat. Ghosh had once famously asked for Murshidabad district to be made a Union Territory.
Following the end of the Left front in the state, this is the first time a legislator from Murshidabad has become a Cabinet Minister — a rank never accorded to leaders from the region in the 15-year TMC rule even if multiple MoS and MoS (Independent Charge) were chosen from the district.
Dipak Barman (Cabinet Minister)
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A school teacher and headmaster by profession, Barman holds a Master’s degree in English from the University of North Bengal and has been associated with the RSS since his student days. A former BJP state vice-president and general secretary, he played a key role in expanding the party’s base in north Bengal. He won the Falakata Assembly seat in the 2021 and 2026 polls.
Reflecting on his win, Barman said, “The people of Falakata had blessed me earlier, and this time too they have reposed their faith in me. Though I could not fulfill all expectations, people continued to support us.”
Dr Ajay Poddar (Cabinet Minister)
Fondly called the ‘doctor of the poor’, Poddar hails from a Rajasthani family in Barakar. His political journey spans over five decades, beginning in 1972 as an RSS worker. He joined the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1973, actively fighting against the Emergency during Jayaprakash Narayan’s movement, and became a founding worker of the BJP in 1980. A grassroots organiser who helped strengthen the party along the Bengal–Jharkhand border, he won the Kulti Assembly seat in the 2021 and 2026 polls.
Dr Sharadwat Mukherjee (Cabinet Minister)
A clinical oncologist by profession, Mukherjee is a graduate and MD from Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, and has been associated with several private hospitals in Kolkata.
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Mukherjee joined the RSS in 2016–17 and went on to take up organisational responsibilities within the BJP before making his electoral debut in 2026 where he defeated TMC’s Sujit Bose in the Bidhannagar Assembly seat.
Manoj Kumar Oraon (Cabinet Minister)
Two-time MLA Oraon is a tribal representative who retained the Kumargram (ST) Assembly seat for the BJP in 2026. In 2025, the RSS-linked leader was suspended from the West Bengal Assembly after allegedly creating ruckus in the house.
Arup Kumar Das (Cabinet Minister)
Another leader with RSS links and a two-time MLA, Das retained the Kanthi Dakshin Assembly constituency in Purba Medinipur in the 2026 polls, defeating his TMC rival by over 31,000 votes.
Malati Rava Roy [MoS (Independent Charge)]
One of the only six women ministers in the new Council of Ministers, two-time MLA Roy retained her Tufanganj Assembly seat in the 2026 polls. Known for her grassroots work in strengthening the BJP in North Bengal, this RSS-turned-BJP leader has been active in local development works in Cooch Behar district.
