The stage is set for the second phase of polling in the high-profile contest in West Bengal in which the BJP has made a determined bid to oust the ruling Trinamool Congress, which has also made hard efforts to win its fourth successive assembly polls in the state.
The first phase of elections on April 23 had seen a record 91.78 per cent polling. The voting on Wednesday will decide the electoral fate of 1,448 candidates, which includes 1,228 men and 220 women.The Election Commission has made all arrangements for the smooth conduct of the polling process.
Of over 3.22 crore total voters, 3.21 crore are general electors and nearly 40,000 are service voters. There are 1.64 crore male electors and 1.57 crore female electors and 792 have been identified as third gender.Over 4.12 lakh voters are in the 18-19 age bracket and over 3,200 voters are 100 years and above. There are over 57,000 voters with disabilities (PWD). The Election Commission has set up 41,001 polling stations for smooth conduct of elections.
These include 39,301 main stations and 1700 auxiliary stations. There are 8,845 all-women-managed stations, 13 PWD-managed stations, and 258 “model” polling stations.There will be webcasting for all 41,001 polling stations.
Polling will start at 7 am and conclude at 6 pm.Issues concerning “infiltration, SIR, deletion of voters and jobs” dominated the election discourse with all parties making special efforts to woo women.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah held several rallies in the state to shore up BJP’s campaign and expressed confidence of the party forming its first government in the state. PM Modi took “Maha jungle raj” jibes at the Trinamool Congress.In his last rally of the campaign in Barrackpore, PM Modi said: “wherever I have gone in West Bengal, I have seen the mood of the people”.
“I am returning with the confidence that after the results on May 4, I will have to come back to attend the BJP’s oath-taking ceremony,” he said. Several other party leaders also campaigned in the state.
Trinamool Congress, led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, also held an extensive campaign and expressed confidence of returning to power.
Both parties interpreted the outcome of the first phase of election held on April 23 in their favour.Mamata Banerjee is in the fray in the second phase of polls from Bhabanipur assembly constituency. She is being challenged by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who is also contesting from Nandigram.
Other key candidates in the second phase include Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, Ministers Chandrima Bhattacharya, Shashi Panja, Aroop Biswas and Bratya Basu.The BJP has fielded Ratna Debnath, the mother of the junior doctor who was raped and murdered at the R G Kar Hospital in Kolkata, from Panihati constituency. BJP’s Swapan Dasgupta is contesting from Rashbehari.
Ahead of polling, Suvendu Adhikari expressed confidence of victory against Mamata Banerjee.”I am contesting on the basis of public support and the workers, not on the basis of the Election Commission or central forces…I am going to fight and defeat Mamata Banerjee tomorrow. Mamata’s police lodged 35 FIRs against me after the second week of 2021, and I was thrown out of the Assembly multiple times,” he said. .
On the question of the BJP’s chief ministerial face if the party secures victory, he said Union Home Minister Amit Shah has stated that the CM will hail from the state. “The party campaigned under the leadership of PM Modi, and Amit Shah himself said that the CM will be from the soil of the state,” he said.There have been charges and counter-charges between TMC and BJP during electioneering.
West Bengal Minister Shashi Panja alleged on Tuesday that TMC workers have been targeted since Monday and called to police stations as the polling for 142 assembly constituencies would be held tomorrow.”This is the last phase of the election in the remaining 142 constituencies in West Bengal. What we have brought to the notice of the CEO is that there is an intrusion by outsiders in these constituencies. This is happening in Bhabanipur and the constituencies of North Calcutta… Since yesterday, TMC active workers have been targeted, continuously harassed and called to the respective local police stations… This also has to be looked into. We told the CEO about it… There are instances of plenty of cash recovery from BJP workers and leaders…” she told reporters outside the Election Commission Office.
The results of West Bengal polls will be declared on May 4, along with the outcome of polls in Assam, Keralam, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.