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During the ongoing vote counting for the West Bengal Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leading by a significant margin. The party appears to be on its way to forming the government, having secured leads in more than half of the total seats. This indicates that the Trinamool Congress (TMC), which has been in power for 15 consecutive years, may be on the verge of defeat.
To form the government in the 294-seat West Bengal Assembly, a minimum of 148 seats is required. According to various sources, the BJP has comfortably surpassed this ‘magic number’ in the current counting.
In this election, the BJP directly challenged the Trinamool Congress, led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. A prominent figure for the BJP was opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari, who was once a significant leader within the Trinamool itself.
Additionally, the Indian National Congress and the Left Front also participated in the elections. The political landscape gained a new dimension with the emergence of a new party formed by Humayun Kabir, an MLA who had been expelled from the Trinamool.
Voting was conducted in two phases on April 23 and 29. Due to directives for re-polling in some centers, including the Falta constituency, those results are not incorporated into today’s counting.
It is noteworthy that in the 2021 elections, the Trinamool Congress secured a victory with 215 seats, while the BJP won 77 seats, becoming the main opposition party. However, this time, there is a strong possibility of a significant political shift.
The contest between Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari in the Bhawanipur constituency attracted particular attention. Overall, West Bengal witnessed a fiercely contested election, characterized by ideological clashes, grassroots politics, and a widespread call for change.
Source: NDTV.