The voting for phase 1 of the eight-phase assembly election in West Bengal began at 7 am on Saturday with voters in 30 of the 294 constituencies voting to decide the fate of 191 candidates. The contest in the state is mainly between the ruling party of 10 years, the Trinamool Congress, and the BJP.  The combination of the Left Front,
Congress and ISF is also in the fray but going by the campaign buzz, the slog overs will be all about Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool versus the BJP. 

As of 6 pm on Saturday, 79.79% voter turnout was recorded in the first phase of polling.

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The state witnessed a very vocal, acerbic campaign with the BJP unleashing its top guns — PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP chief JP Nadda, all top union ministers — for canvassing in the state. The main target of most speeches of the BJP leaders was Mamata Banerjee and her alleged “mishandling’ of the state.

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The ruling Trinamool is eyeing a third term whereas the BJP is trying to build on its 2019 Lok Sabha performance, where it won 18 seats, 16 more than the 2 seat of 2014 and only four less than the Trinamool. 

With her back to the wall, Mamata not only faced an aggressive BJP but was also plagued by an anti-incumbency of 10 years and a steady exodus of top leaders from the party. Not one to be bogged down, Mamata took the battle to the enemy camp by deciding to shift from Bhowanipore to Nandigram, the constituency of her one-time close aide Suvendu Adhikari, who was among the leaders who jumped over to the BJP. 

In the run-up to the first day of polling in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee was injured when she went to file her nomination in Nandigram on March 11. She had alleged that she was pushed by 4-5 people, who shut the car door on her, as part of a “conspiracy,” the CM said.

The 294-member Assembly will vote in eight phases on March 27, April 1, April 6, April 10, April 17, April 22, April 26, and
lastly on April 29. The votes will be counted on May 2

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While the Trinamool Congress has fielded 291 candidates, leaving three seats in north Bengal for their allies
Gorkha Janamukti Morcha, the BJP has put up 148 candidates. In the
Grand Alliance, the Left Front has announced 124 of its candidates so far. The
ISF, on the other hand, has so far announced a list of 21 candidates whereas
Congress has named 50 of its candidates so far.

About 73,294,980 electors will exercise their franchise across 101,916 polling booths. According to reports, 101,916 polling booths will be set up in the state, compared to 77,413 in 2016. The number of voters in each polling station has been restricted to 1,000 from 1,500.

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