Bengal polls: Mamata to meet Tejaswi; chair Trinamool's election committee meeting on Monday

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee is set to chair an election committee meeting on Monday at her residence in Kalighat to look into the selection of candidates and formulate a strategy for the upcoming assembly polls.

The meeting will be held at 12:00 pm.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav will also be meeting Mamata Banerjee today to discuss West Bengal elections.

Trinamool Congress's election committee will also refine the plan of campaigning.

West Bengal will have eight-phased Assembly polls and first phase will be held on March 27, the counting of votes will take place on May 2.The state is likely to witness a triangular contest this time with TMC, Congress-Left alliance and BJP in the fray.

While Mamata Banerjee is seeking her third consecutive term, BJP has set a target of winning 200 seats in the 294-member state Assembly. Congress and the Left have stitched the alliance for the polls and had already finalised the seat-sharing agreement. They are also in touch with the Indian Secular Front (ISF), recently floated by influential minority leader Abbas Siddique.

With the announcement of the election schedule, the Model Code of Conduct has come into force in the state.

In 2016, West Bengal Assembly elections, out of the 294 seats, Congress had managed to win 44 seats while the Left Front bagged 33 seats. The ruling TMC secured 211 seats and the BJP had won 3 seats.