Assembly Election LIVE Updates: All political parties in the state have been asked to send only one representative each for the meeting which will discuss matters related to the campaigning for the last four phases of the poll
Representational image. PTI
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Union minister Babul Supriyo was quoted by MoneyControl on Thursday as saying that the BJP’s "match-winning mantra in cash-strapped West Bengal would be economic development".
"That, claims Supriyo, is the only way to succeed, the only way to bring all communities on the same page. Supriyo, who will contest from the Tollygunge neighborhood in the southern fringes of Kolkata, said West Bengal has lived in a state of denial for over four decades," the report said.
“Economy will bring everyone together. Bengal needs to change. I do not want to see the whole past in our future, the future of Bengal. Business must grow, jobs must return. The time has come to stop the brain drain from the state,” Supriyo told MoneyControl.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Actor and Samajwadi Party leader Jaya Bachchan attended a roadshow with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee in Sealdah on Thursday, The Indian Express reported. The fifth of eight phases of the state's Assembly polls will be held on Saturday.
Bypolls Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut held a roadshow on Wednesday campaigning for Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti candidate Shubham Shelke in the Belagavi Lok Sabha bypoll
Belagavi: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut held a roadshow yesterday campaigning for Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti candidate Shubham Shelke in the Belagavi Lok Sabha bypoll pic.twitter.com/A2RZmajiua
— ANI (@ANI) April 15, 2021
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
West Bengal chief electoral officer (CEO) Aariz Aftab Wednesday called an all party meeting on 16 April following the Calcutta High Court direction to the CEO and all district magistrates in the state to ensure strict implementation of COVID-19 protocol during campaigning for the remaining four phases of the state election, an EC official said.
All political parties in the state have been asked to send only one representative each for the meeting which will discuss matters related to the campaigning for the last four phases of the poll, he said. There will be discussions on the norms of social distancing and relevant COVID-19 protocol, the official added.
State Additional Director General of police (Law and Order) Jag Mohan and state health secretary NS Nigam will also be present in the meeting, he said.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Union minister Babul Supriyo was quoted by MoneyControl on Thursday as saying that the BJP’s "match-winning mantra in cash-strapped West Bengal would be economic development".
"That, claims Supriyo, is the only way to succeed, the only way to bring all communities on the same page. Supriyo, who will contest from the Tollygunge neighborhood in the southern fringes of Kolkata, said West Bengal has lived in a state of denial for over four decades," the report said.
“Economy will bring everyone together. Bengal needs to change. I do not want to see the whole past in our future, the future of Bengal. Business must grow, jobs must return. The time has come to stop the brain drain from the state,” Supriyo told MoneyControl.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Political leaders canvassing during the ongoing eight-phase Assembly polls were seen leading rodshows, rallies and public meeting in the absence of a mask. From Rahul Gandhi in Pathanamthitta to Amit Shah in Sitalkuchi to Mamata Banerjee in Bardhaman district, leaders were seen ditching the mask at political events.
A Delhi High Court Bench had earlier this month directed the Election Commission to ensure COVId-19 protocols are followed during the election campaign.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Ahead of the fifth phase of voting in West Bengal on 17 April, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee holds a roadshow from Gandhi Bhawan in Beleghata to Bowbazar in Kolkata.
West Bengal: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee holds a roadshow from Gandhi Bhawan in Beleghata to Bowbazar in Kolkata. pic.twitter.com/9nOpOe8ZwA
— ANI (@ANI) April 15, 2021
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Union Minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani on Wednesday lashed out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, saying that while she talks of 'khela hobe', the people of the state are saying there will be slogans for lotus.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Congress candidate Rezaul Haque, who was contesting the West Bengal polls from the Samserganj constituency in Murshidabad, died while being treated in a private hospital in Kolkata for COVID-19.
Rohan Mitra, Bengal Pradesh Congress Secretary, took to Twitter to share the news on Thursday morning. He wrote, “In Murshidabad district, Samserganj Assembly INC India candidate Rezaul Haque passed away last night due to Corona! The reality we are facing! Wake up and smell the coffee. Survive this year and be alive to see the next new year of the Bengali calendar"
Kerala Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Pinarayi Vijayan went to vote despite testing COVID positive, claims V Muraleedharan
Union Minister and BJP leader V Muraleedharan called Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan a 'Covidiot', saying went to vote despite testing positive for coronavirus.
"'Covidiot' you know what it means. There's no other word that can be used for a CM who continuously violates COVID protocol. As per doctors of Calicut Medical College, Kerala CM tested positive on 4 April and on 6 April, he voted without following protocols," Muraleedharan said.
Elections in Kerala were held in a single phase on 6 April and the results will be declared on 2 May.
West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates
Mamata Banerjee will hold a road show in Kolkata at 3 pm, while protégé-turned-rival Suvendu Adhikari will address a rally in Balurghat.
Banerjee and Adhikari came face to face in the Nandigram constituency, with the latter contesting on a BJP ticket.
Assembly Election LATEST News Updates: West Bengal chief electoral officer (CEO) Aariz Aftab on Wednesday called an all party meeting on 16 April following the Calcutta High Court direction to the CEO and all district magistrates in the state to ensure strict implementation of protocol during campaigning for the remaining four phases of the state election, an EC official said.
All political parties in the state have been asked to send only one representative each for the meeting which will discuss matters related to the campaigning for the last four phases of the poll, he said. There will be discussions on the norms of social distancing and relevant protocol, the official added.
State Additional Director General of police (Law and Order) Jag Mohan and state health secretary NS Nigam will also be present in the meeting, he said.
Campaigning for the fifth phase of the West Bengal assembly elections, in which 45 seats will go to polls on 17 April, ended on Wednesday. The campaigning ended at 6.30 pm. The Election Commission has increased the silence period from 48 to 72 hours in view of the Cooch Behar killings in the fourth phase.
A total of 1.13 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes to decide the fate of 342 candidates, including Siliguri Mayor and Left Front leader Ashok Bhattacharya, state minister Bratya Basu and BJP's Samik Bhattacharya. Polling will be held from 7 am to 6.30 pm at 15,789 polling stations in 16 assembly seats in North 24 Parganas, eight each in Purba Bardhaman and Nadia, seven in Jalpaiguri, five Darjeeling and one in Kalimpong district.
In view of the Cooch Behar killings, in which four people were killed in CISF firing and one man was shot dead by unidentified persons outside a booth in Sitalkuchi, the EC has decided to deploy at least 853 companies of central forces to ensure free and fair voting, an election official said.
The BJP's star campaigners including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, party chief JP Nadda and actor Mithun Chakraborty had addressed several rallies in the region, attacking the TMC over corruption charges.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee, on the other hand, attacked the Centre over fuel price rise. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also addressed rallies in the state on Saturday.
The BJP led in more assembly seats than the TMC in the region in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The TMC had won 32 seats in the 2016 assembly polls, the Left-Congress alliance 10, while the BJP had drawn a blank.
Votes polled in the eight-phase assembly elections to 294 seats being held from 27 March to 29 April will be counted on 2 May.