Bengal got 35 new ministers on Wednesday. Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari has retained key portfolios, including home and hill affairs, land and land reforms, power, and information and cultural affairs. Metro takes a look at some of the prominent faces in the new cabinet and the departments they have been assigned
Tapas Roy
Industry, commerce and enterprises
Age: 70
Lives in: Bowbazar
Education: BSc from St Paul’s College (under CU); bachelor of law from Surendranath Law College (under CU)
Profession: Politician, advocate and businessman, according to his election affidavit.
Assets: ₹4 crore (approx)
Political career: Spent decades in the Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC), and ended up in the BJP in March 2024. A former president of the Congress student wing in Bengal, he contested and won his first Assembly seat on a Congress ticket in 1996. In 2001, he joined Mamata Banerjee. Experience: Served as the minister of state for planning and statistics and deputy chief whip in the Assembly for Trinamool.
Pending criminal cases: None
Priorities: “To bring the Tatas back in Singur,” Roy said on Day I. He claimed that 6,688 industries left Bengal because of Trinamool misrule. “My focus would be to bring them back,” he said.
Jagannath Chattopadhyay
Higher education and technical education
Age: 48
Lives in: Suri (Birbhum)
Education: MA in journalism and mass communication from CU n Profession: Formerly a journalist; now a politician
Assets: ₹1.95 crore (approx)
Political career: Took the political plunge in 2020. In 2021, he unsuccessfully contested the Suri Assembly seat in Birbhum. Five years later, he wrested the seat
Pending criminal cases: One
Priorities: To align Bengal’s educational policies with those of the Centre. His “aim is to create an education policy rooted in the spirit of nationalism and aligned with the policies of the Centre”, Chattopadhyay said after taking charge.
Sharadwat Mukherjee
Health and family welfare
Age: 56
Lives in: Salt Lake n Qualification: Doctor of Medicine (MD) from University College of Medicine, CU
Profession: Oncologist
Assets: ₹15.7 crore (approx)
Political career: Mukherjee, a poll debutant, is a giant slayer. He defeated his nearest rival, Trinamool heavyweight Sujit Bose, by over 37,000 votes.
Pending criminal cases: None
Priorities: Mukherjee did not make much of Bengal getting a doctor as health minister after 15 years. “What is more important is being practical and aware of people’s needs,” he said.
Swapan Dasgupta
Finance
Age: 70
Lives in: Rashbehari (on Mahanirban Road)
Qualification: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
Profession: Former journalist, now a columnist
Assets: ₹8 crore (approx)
Political career: Before entering electoral politics, Dasgupta was a prominent journalist and a leading political commentator. He was nominated to the Rajya Sabha by then-President Pranab Mukherjee as an eminent personality in literature in 2016. He resigned early in 2021 and unsuccessfully contested the 2021 Bengal Assembly elections from Tarakeswar in Hooghly. In 2026, he defeated Trinamool heavyweight Debasish Kumar in Rashbehari.
Pending criminal cases: None
Priorities: “Let me understand the problems first. The solutions will emerge gradually. We need to bring in a renewed administrative rigour. To maximise revenue and lower the burden on individuals, we need to set specific targets,” Dasgupta said.
Arjun Singh
Transport and labour
Age: 64
Lives in: Jagaddal, North 24-Parganas
Qualification: Higher secondary n Profession: Business
Assets: ₹2.7 crore (approx)
Political career: A veteran in Bengal’s jute belt, Singh flaunts a “strongman image”. A series of flip-flops between the Trinamool and the BJP has marked his political career. The latest switch came in March 2024. Denied a Lok Sabha ticket from Barrackpore, Singh joined the BJP. He contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket from Barrackpore and lost. In 2026, he won the Noapara Assembly seat.
Pending criminal cases: More than 100
Priorities: “The bus fleet is dwindling. Fuel is being siphoned off at pumps. I am a grassroots politician. Finding out the problems will not be difficult for me,” he said.
Shankar Ghosh
Tourism and parliamentary affairs
Age: 52
Lives in: Siliguri
Qualification: PhD in Botany from North Bengal University
Profession: Teacher and politician
Assets: ₹2.5 crore (approx) n Political career: One of the BJP’s most prominent faces in north Bengal. He began his political career in the CPM, serving as a councillor and mayor-in-council member in Siliguri. He joined the BJP before the 2021 Bengal elections and won from Siliguri. He retained the seat in 2026.
Pending criminal cases: Three
Priorities: “Bengal has unique features, from high-ridge mountains to lush green forests and seashores. I prefer to act on collective opinion for the prosperity of the industry and try to make Bengal a global tourist destination,” said Ghosh.
Some of the information has been sourced from the ministers’ election affidavits and the MyNeta portal