Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates: PM Modi, Amit Shah to hold multiple rallies in West Bengal today

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Cooch Behar killings turning point, BJP to be routed from north Bengal: Bimal Gurung

Asserting that firing by the CISF in Cooch Behar on April 10, which claimed four lives, will be a "turning point" in Bengal polls, Bimal Gurung, the chief of one of the two GJM factions, claimed that the BJP is set to face the wrath of voters in the next four phases of elections, especially in the northern part of the state. Gurung, in an interview with PTI, reaffirmed that "statehood is a dream nurtured by every Gorkha" living in the hills, while also noting that the TMC's pitch for a "permanent political solution" and the overall development of Darjeeling and its adjoining areas sounds "very encouraging". Lashing out at the BJP for "deceiving the Gorkha jaati for 12 years with fake promises", Gurung, who deserted the NDA and joined hands with the TMC in October 2020, said he will teach the saffron camp a "lesson for life", with Mamata Banerjee by his side.

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Ready to resign only if people of Bengal ask me to do so: Amit Shah on Cooch Behar killings

Union Home Minister Amit Shah yesterday said that he is ready to resign from his post only if the people of West Bengal ask him to do so. The senior BJP leader, however, asserted that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will have to quit on May 2 as the Trinamool Congress will lose the ongoing assembly elections. The TMC chief has demanded Shah's resignation over the killing of four people in firing by CISF personnel during the fourth phase of voting in Sitalkuchi in Cooch Behar district on April 10. (PTI)

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | People in authority should ensure respect for central forces on public duty: West Bengal Governor

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar yesterday said those in authority must ensure respect for constitutional institutions and central forces engaged in public duty. Dhankhar's comments came a day after the state plunged into chaos when five people were killed, including four in CISF firing, during the fourth phase of polling in the Cooch Behar district. "All must unitedly condemn and abjure violence that  has no place in democracy. Pained and anguished at violence in Cooch Behar leading to loss of lives. People in authority must show statesmanship and ensure respect for constitutional institutions and CAPF engaged in public duty," the Governor said in a tweet.

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address three public meetings in West Bengal today:

> Bardhaman at 12 noon
> Kalyani at 1.45 pm
> Barasat at 3.15 pm

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Union Home Miniater and BJP leader Amit Shah to hold roadshows and public meetings at four places in West Bengal today:

> Roadshow in Kalimpong at 11.30 am
> Public meeting in Dhupguri at 1.40 pm
> Public meeting in Hemtabad at 3.30 pm
> Roadshow in Siliguri at 5 pm

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Congress candidate in Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, Madhava Rao dies of COVID-19

Congress party's Srivilliputhur constituency candidate in the April 6 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, PSW Madhava Rao died yesterday due to COVID-19 complications, his family said. Rao was 63 years old and is survived by his only daughter. He died at a private hospital in Madurai this morning where he was admitted on March 20 for treatment, Rao's son-in-law, K Rajiv told PTI. Congress party secretary and Tamil Nadu incharge Sanjay Dutt tweeted saying he was deeply pained to learn about the demise of Rao due to COVID-19 complications.

Assembly Elections 2021 LIVE Updates | Anchalik Gana Morcha urges EC to videograph counting process in Assam

The Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM), a constituent of the opposition Congress-led 'Mahajoot' in Assam, yesterday urged the Election Commission to videograph the May 2 counting of the assembly elections in the state. In a letter to the EC, AGM president and Rajya Sabha member Ajit Kumar Bhuyan said the Commission has to depend on the state bureaucracy in the entire process of the assembly elections, and claimed that there is an "apprehension" that some sections of the employees may favour the ruling BJP and "can do mischief in the counting". (PTI)

Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol’s LIVE coverage of the campaigning for Assembly election 2021.

It’s the assembly elections season in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry. Polling happened in a single phase in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on April 6, while voters in Assam cast their votes in three phases. Polling in Bengal is happening in eight phases. Of these, four phases have concluded.

Stay tuned to this LIVE blog for the latest updates through the day.