Assembly Election 2021 LIVE Updates: Politicos from BJP, TMC and Congress are holding rallies and roadshows in Bengal, encouraging a large congregation of crowds. CPM is the only party in the fray that has declared it will abstain from large rallies and conduct door-to-door campaign
Representational image. PTI
Assembly Election 2021 LATEST News and Updates: Politicos from BJP, TMC and Congress are holding rallies and roadshows in Bengal, encouraging a large congregation of crowds. CPM is the only party in the fray that has declared it will abstain from large rallies and conduct door-to-door campaign
Speaking at a rally in Nadia, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she will urge the Election Commission to stop BJP from bringing "outsiders" to campaign in West Bengal to check the spread of COVID-19
in the state.
JP Nadda alleged at a rally in Ketugram that the state government had not let the money granted to the state’s farmers under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme to reach beneficiaries.
Sharing a picture of the BJP candidate for Ranaghat North East having lunch with central forces, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra urged the Election Commission to investigate the matter and take appropriate action.
Union minister Amit Shah and BJP chief JP Nadda are scheduled to hold election rallies in West Bengal ahead of the fifth phase of polling on Saturday. Four phases of the Assembly election remain to be conducted on 17, 22, 26 and 29 April and the counting of votes cast in election in four states and one Union Territory will be held on 2 May.
Worried over the COVID-19 surge, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on Thursday urged the Election Commission to think about conducting polls for the remaining assembly seats at one go, while also stressing that her party had opposed the prolonged eight-phase poll schedule.
"Amid an ongoing pandemic, we firmly opposed @ECISVEEP''s decision to conduct WB polls in 8 phases. Now, in view of the huge surge in #COVID19 cases, I urge the ECI to consider holding the remaining phases in ONE go," the CM said.
Arrangements for the fifth phase of polls, on 17 April, are already nearing completion, an election official said, even as several social media users held debates on whether the poll panel should at least conduct the next three phases of Bengal elections on a single day.
Assembly polls have been held for 135 constituencies so far in the West Bengal, and the remaining 159 seats are set go to the polls in the next four phases.
