Campaigning Ends for Phase 1, Voting Begins on Saturday

Campaigning for Phase 1 of Assembly elections in West Bengal and Assam, that have been in full swing over the last few months, ends on Thursday, March 25. Both states are set to enter the first phase of the Assembly polls on Saturday.

Elections to the 294-member West Bengal state Assembly will be held in eight phases beginning from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29, and polling for the 126-member Assam assembly will be held on March 27, April 1 and April 6.

In Assam, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is looking to retain its power while in West Bengal, the saffron party will face a tough tussle with the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The BJP aims to get a majority of over 200 seats in Bengal while Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee seems confident to remain in power for third time in a row.

Despite rebellion from several TMC leaders including Suvendu Adhikari and his father Sisir who switched over to the BJP camp recently, Mamata has termed the upcoming polls as a “smiley election”. Mamata said that she was happy that ‘Mir Jafars’ (traitors) had left the TMC which has indeed saved the party.

The BJP, which is campaigning in Bengal on the theme of ‘Ashol Poriborton’ (real change), has fielded Suvendu Adhikari against Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram assembly seat. The TMC and the BJP have been engaged in a war of words ahead of the elections with both parties levelling up their allegations of corruption against each other.

In Assam, the BJP is at loggerheads with the Congress party which had Rahul Gandhi leading its election campaign in the state. The BJP, on the other hand, had Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and party’s national chief JP Nadda leading its poll campaign at several districts in the state.

All parties have kept their election manifesto strong for the upcoming elections with the BJP promising to uplift the status of women in Bengal, provide one job per family, implement 7th pay commission for state government employees along with the promise of Rs 18,000 PM-Kisan arrear for farmers in the state. The TMC, on the other hand, made promises ranging from strengthening the economy to creating jobs and improving healthcare and education facilities in the state. It also promised to provide housing to all.

In its election manifesto for Assam, the BJP promised to implement “corrected NRC” in the state and the Congress, on the other hand, promised not to implement CAA if it came to power in the state.