BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday vowed that Haldia MLA Tapasi Mondal would be defeated in the 2026 Assembly polls if she contested from the same seat again.

Mondal, who had defected from the BJP to the Trinamul Congress on Monday, was appointed as the chairperson of the West Bengal Women Development Undertaking on Thursday. It functions under the department of women and child development and social welfare.

Reacting to Mondal’s statement that she had taken "new grounds for a new game with a new strategy," the leader of the Opposition said: "I know her strategy well. She will be defeated this time, never to be found again."

Addressing BJP workers in Haldia, Adhikari assured them that Mondal’s departure — despite her previous reputation as his loyalist — would not weaken the party in the region.

"Tapasi Mondal's exit from the BJP will have little impact. She has no significant influence. I got her defeated in the civic polls... when she could secure just 111 votes. She is not invincible. Next year, she will be defeated again, by a true son or daughter of Haldia," Adhikari said.

The Nandigram MLA accused Mondal of sabotaging BJP activities in the constituency. He alleged that she had prevented several BJP programmes.

"It was Laxman Seth of the CPM who first brought her to politics, but she later turned against him. She has a habit of confrontation," Adhikari said.

The BJP leader claimed that Mondal had never stood by BJP workers in times of crisis. "As an MLA, she receives ₹1.20 lakh every month. But she has never helped party workers in distress — not even by offering ₹100," he alleged.

In response to Adhikari’s challenge, Mondal asserted that she understood Haldia and its people better than the BJP leader.

"I know Haldia better than Suvendu Adhikari. I know its people and understand them well. Time will tell who is right. I accept the challenge. It will be a new game with a new strategy," she said.

The MLA also accused the BJP and Adhikari of spreading misinformation about her defection.

"Adhikari is misleading people with the false claim that I left the BJP because I wasn’t made the East Midnapore district president of the party. That is completely untrue. I quit the BJP because of Suvendu Adhikari’s divisive politics and I wanted to be part of Mamata Banerjee’s development initiatives," said Mondal.

Ruling out that she would quit the Assembly, Mondal added: "I will work to meet the expectations of the Trinamool leadership."