Kolkata: On counting day, Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Monday asserted that the BJP is set to form the government in the state, while the Trinamool Congress will fall short of the 100-seat mark.
Speaking to IANS, Adhikari said, “The BJP is forming the government. The Trinamool Congress will win some seats, but as I have been saying, they will not reach three figures. They may secure a decent number, but not 100. The situation will become clearer once half of the counting is completed.”
Referring to his performance in Nandigram, Adhikari added, “I am receiving more votes compared to the 2021 elections. Earlier, I had around 3,000-3,500 votes by the third round; now it is close to 7,000. The margin is increasing.”
He further said the BJP got 45 per cent of the vote and the Trinamool Congress got 38 per cent. “The message is clear, and the trend is clear,” he said.
He further expressed confidence about his lead, stating, “In the coming rounds, I expect to extend my lead by over 10,000 votes.”
Meanwhile, the trends so far for the 293 Assembly seats show that there are four districts in West Bengal where Trinamool Congress candidates are not leading in any constituency.
These four districts are Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri in North Bengal, and Jhargram and West Burdwan district in South Bengal.
The four Assembly constituencies in Jhargram district are Nayagram, Gopiballavpur, Jhargram and Binpur (ST), and as per the trend as of 10.30 a.m., the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates are leading in all four constituencies. Jhargram is a part of the tribal-dominated Jangalmahal area, once a CPI(M) fortress, which subsequently turned into a strong Trinamool Congress bastion after 2011.
During the last few years of Left Front rule in West Bengal, the entire Jharkhand district became a strong Maoist belt.
The five Assembly constituencies in Alipurduar district are Kumargram (ST), Kalchini (ST), Alipurduar, Falakata (SC) and Madarihat (ST), and as per the trend as of 10.30 a.m., the BJP candidates are leading in all five.
The seven Assembly constituencies in Jalpaiguri district are Dhupguri (SC), Maynaguri (SC), Jalpaiguri (SC), Rajganj (SC), Dabgram-Phulbari, Mal (ST) and Nagrakata (ST), and as per the trend as of 10.30 a.m., the BJP candidates are leading in all seven.
Both Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar, in the Terai and Dooars region of West Bengal, are basically tea garden belts, where tribal and Rajbangshi voters are major factors
The seven Assembly constituencies in West Burdwan district are Pandabeswar, Durgapur (Purba), Durgapur (Paschim), Raniganj, Jamuria, Asansol (Dakshin) and Asansol (Uttar), and as per the trend as of 10.30 a.m., the BJP candidates are leading in all seven.
In Asansol (Dakshin), the sitting BJP legislator and the fashion designer-turned-politician, Agnimitra Paul, is comfortably leading.
While addressing successive campaign rallies before the two-phase elections on April 23 and April 29, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had forecast that there would be several districts in West Bengal, where Trinamool Congress would not be able to open their accounts.
(IANS)
