NORTH 24 PARAGANAS (West Bengal) : As the counting of votes for the Lok Sabha election is underway on Tuesday, BJP’s Basirhat Lok Sabha candidate, Rekha Patra, expressed confidence in BJP’s victory in West Bengal’s Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, saying the BJP is going to win, and PM Modi will come to Basirhat.
“I am going to win. BJP is going to win and PM Modi will come to Basirhat. The future of Sandeshkhali is bright. BJP is leading in all seats. The environment has been peaceful here since morning. The Central forces are here, local police remain outside…Lotus has bloomed in Basirhat,” she told.
The BJP’s Rekha Patra, was one of the women who led protests against suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan in Sandeshkhali, is pitted against TMC’s Haji Nurul Islam and CPIM’s Nirapada Sardar for the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat.
Earlier this year, Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district made headlines when villagers, predominantly women, protested against the ruling TMC and TMC leader Shahjahan. They accused him and his associates of committing atrocities and seizing their land. Several women of Sandeshkhali have alleged “land-grab and sexual assault” under coercion by Shajahan and his aides.
Following this, the TMC suspended Shahjahan, the main accused in Sandeshkhali, from the party for six years. He is currently in jail in relation to an attack on an Enforcement Directorate (ED) team during a raid at his home linked to a ration scam.
Strict security measures have been implemented to ensure the smooth counting of votes for more than 8,000 candidates in this general election. Vote counting commenced at 8 pm today.
Most of the exit polls have predicted BJP getting more seats than the TMC in West Bengal.
The exit poll outcome was declared after the conclusion of polling for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha polls on Saturday.
According to the News18 exit poll, the BJP-led NDA is expected to win 21-24 seats in West Bengal. The TMC is set to win 18-21 seats.
India TV poll said that the BJP-led NDA may get between 22-26 seats, TMC 14-18 seats, and Congress to get 1-2 seats.
The ABP News-CVoter exit poll predicted a landslide victory for the BJP in West Bengal. The BJP is predicted to win 23-27 seats while the Trinamool Congress is expected to get 13-17 seats. The Congress to get 1-3 seats.
According to News 24-Today’s Chanakya Analysis, the BJP is poised to win 24 seats, TMC to get 17 seats and Congress to get 1 seat.
According to the India Today-Axis My India, BJP will get 26-31 seats, TMC to get 11-14 seats and INDIA bloc to get 0-2 seats.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the TMC had won 22 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state, and the BJP won 18. Congress won only 2 seats.
Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said that a “very robust system” has been put in place. “There are around 10.5 lakh booths. Each booth will have 14 tables. There are observers and micro-observers. Nearly, 70-80 lakh people are involved in the process,” he said.
Results of the Assembly elections in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were held simultaneously with voting for the 543-member Lok Sabha. Results of 175 Assembly constituencies in Andhra Pradesh and 147 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and results of bypolls in 25 Assembly constituencies will also be declared today.
The Lok Sabha elections were conducted in seven phases- on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1. (ANI)