TMC and BJP face a tough fight in Bengal for the first phase of 152 seats; read 10 key facts

News Topical, Digital Desk : Voting is underway on Thursday in 152 constituencies across 16 districts in the first phase of the Bengal Assembly elections, following a lengthy process of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists.

These include eight districts in North Bengal, three in South Bengal, and five in the Jangalmahal region. According to information provided by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer of Bengal, a total of 2,407 companies of central forces have been deployed for the first phase. Purba Medinipur district has the highest deployment of 273 companies. Polling stations have been transformed into impregnable fortresses. Central forces control every 100-meter radius around them.

10 big things related to the elections

1. Nearly 36 million voters are expected to cast their ballots today in 152 of the 294 seats across the state's 16 districts. At least 80 seats are expected to be tightly contested.
2. Having served three consecutive terms in office since 2011, many believe this could be Mamata Banerjee's toughest election yet. However, similar sentiments were raised in 2021, when Banerjee's Trinamool Congress won 215 seats, its best-ever performance. The BJP won 77 seats in that election.
3. The BJP has steadily eroded Trinamool's early lead, tirelessly highlighting the corruption, law and order issues, and lack of development that have plagued Bengal for the past five decades.
4. Trinamool has portrayed the contest as a fight for self-determination against outsiders, and also a battle for survival against the central government, which it accuses of refusing to release funds allocated to the state.
5. Worryingly for the ruling party, the Election Commission's "special deep revision" of the electoral rolls has removed the names of approximately 8.9 million voters. This figure is only slightly more than the Trinamool Congress's victory margin in 2021.
6. In 2021, Mamata Banerjee's party won 48 percent of the vote, while the BJP won 38 percent. Data shows that the impact of the SIR has reduced voter rolls by more than 11.6 percent in several districts, where the Trinamool's victory margin is very small.
7. Prominent Trinamool Congress candidates contesting in this phase include Gautam Deb from Siliguri, Udayan Guha from Dinhata, Firhad Hakim from Kolkata Port area and Pabitra Kar from Nandigram.
8. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari is contesting from his stronghold of Nandigram. He is also challenging Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Bhawanipur, where voting will take place in the second phase. Prominent BJP candidates include Union Minister Nisith Pramanik from Mathabhanga and former state president Dilip Ghosh from Kharagpur Sadar.
9. The Election Commission has turned the state into a fortress and deployed 2,407 companies of Central Armed Police Forces comprising over 2.4 lakh personnel.
10. No one except voters, election workers, on-duty police personnel, and authorized agents of political parties is permitted to enter this area. Four Central Force personnel are deployed at each polling station. These personnel will be free to move freely, with police officers guiding them.

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