West Bengal awaits crucial Assembly election results on May 4

West Bengal will witness counting of votes on Monday amid heavy security arrangements after a high-voltage Assembly election campaign. The results will determine whether the TMC retains power or the BJP secures a historic breakthrough in the politically crucial state

Kolkata: West Bengal heads into verdict day on Monday after over a month of intense campaigning, as it waits with bated breath to see whether the TMC manages to retain power or the BJP makes a historic breakthrough and claims the state for the first time.

As the EVMs are opened at 8 am, the CPI(M) and the Congress will also be watching keenly, hoping to reclaim a foothold in the state’s electoral map after five years in the wilderness following their wipeout in the 2021 polls.

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Counting of votes will take place across 77 centres in the state, with elaborate security arrangements and a charged political atmosphere setting the stage for the declaration of results in 293 of the 294-seat House.

The Election Commission countermanded polls in the entire Falta constituency in South 24 Parganas district, citing “severe electoral offences and subversion of democratic process during polling in a large number of polling stations”.

The fresh poll in that seat and the counting of votes will take place on May 21 and May 24, respectively.

The two-phase polls in the state ended on April 29, with what the election watchdog said was the state’s highest-ever voter turnout of 92.47 per cent since Independence.

Repolling in 15 booths in South 24 Parganas concluded on Saturday, with around 87 per cent turnout recorded, officials said.

The state’s political climate remained highly charged even after the conclusion of polling, leading to heightened anticipation ahead of the announcement of results, with both primary contenders, the TMC and the BJP, claiming confidence in their victory prospects.

Courtesy of the tight security arrangements, with over 2.5 lakh central paramilitary personnel on the ground besides the presence of a thoroughly reshuffled State police force, electoral violence remained minimal and no deaths were reported for the first time in the state’s election history in recent decades.

This was also the first election held in the state in 20 years after an extensive, though controversial, SIR exercise that revised the electoral rolls, removing over 9 million voters.

The jury is still out on the impact of the exercise on the electoral fortunes of all parties, prompting pollsters to work overtime to understand voter preferences and keeping the public keenly interested in the outcome.

The campaigns saw the BJP unleashing its full might, with top leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launching attacks on the TMC over corruption, law and order, infiltration, women’s safety and unemployment, while promising welfare measures.

The TMC’s response, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and party MP Abhishek Banerjee leading the charge, focused on SIR harassment, alleged persecution of Bengalis and the ‘outsider’ plank, while accusing the BJP of failing to deliver on its national commitments and highlighting the TMC government’s development record.

Polling for the elections was held on April 23 and April 29, with a total electorate of over 3.21 crore.

The poll body has scaled down the number of counting centres this year to 77 from the 87 announced earlier, and 108 in 2021, while putting in place a multi-layered security grid.

“Comprehensive security arrangements have been made to ensure that counting is conducted in a peaceful, transparent and orderly manner,” a senior EC official said.

The run-up to counting, however, has been marked by high political drama, with TMC leaders led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rushing to strong rooms in Kolkata, apprehending counting malpractice and alleging attempts to tamper with the sealed EVMs.

The EC rejected those allegations, maintaining that all electronic voting machines are kept under strict surveillance with round-the-clock security and CCTV monitoring.

“Strong rooms are secured under a three-tier security system, and candidates or their representatives are allowed to keep watch as per protocol. There is no scope for any tampering,” another poll panel official said.

Closer to the counting date, security outside strong rooms has been further tightened, with the EC deploying 165 additional counting observers and 77 police observers to oversee the process and ensure adherence to norms.

In Kolkata, counting for 11 Assembly constituencies will be conducted across five locations — Ballygunge Government High School, Baba Saheb Ambedkar Education University, Shakhawat Memorial School, Netaji Indoor Stadium and St Thomas Boys’ School.

Counting for the Bhabanipur seat, arguably carrying the highest symbolic weight where Mamata Banerjee is taking on senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in a prestige battle on her home turf, will be held at the Shakhawat Memorial centre.

The EC has introduced stringent access control measures, mandating entry only through QR code-based photo identity cards issued through its ECINet system. Mobile phones have been barred inside counting halls, except for returning officers and observers.

The counting exercise will be conducted under a framework upheld by the Supreme Court, which on Saturday declined to pass further directions on a TMC plea challenging the deployment of Central government personnel.

The elections saw the TMC contesting 291 seats and its ally Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), led by Anit Thapa, fielding candidates in three seats in the Darjeeling hills.

The BJP, Congress and the Left Front are contesting all 294 segments, with parties like Humayun Kabir’s AJUP and Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM also trying their luck in some crucial pockets.

BJP leaders like Dilip Ghosh, Agnimitra Paul, Roopa Ganguly and Nishit Pramanik are in the fray, while prominent TMC candidates include Firhad Hakim, Kunal Ghosh, Madan Mitra and Udayan Guha.