Kolkata, May 4 (PTI) The BJP has won six seats and was leading in 196 seats, while the TMC has bagged one as the counting of votes in West Bengal Assembly polls progressed on Monday, indicating a saffron surge in the state.
According to Election Commission data, the BJP has already secured victory in Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Monteswar, Bhatar, Medinipur and Asansol Dakshin seats.
Bharat Kumar Chetri won the Kalimpong seat by a margin of 21464 votes, Saikat Panja secured victory Purba Bardhaman district’s Monteswar by 14,798 votes, Karfa Soumen in the same district’s Bhatar constituency by 6,528 votes, Angimitra Paul in Asansol Dakshin by 40,839 votes, Sankar Kumar Guchhait in Medinipur by 38,747 votes and Noman Rai by a margin of 6,057 votes.
On the other hand, the TMC retained the Bhagawangola seat in Murshidabad district, with its candidate Reyat Hossain Sarkar defeating his nearest candidate by a margin of 56,407. The party is leading in 87 other seats.
Sources in the TMC said at least 23 ministers were trailing across constituencies, signalling a widespread challenge for the party leadership.
Among the prominent leaders, outgoing Education Minister Bratya Basu was trailing by 10,521 votes, Manas Ranjan Bhunia by around 4,450 votes, Women and Child Development Minister Shashi Panja by nearly 5,000 votes, and Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya by 3,878 votes.
In Singur, BJP candidate Arup Kumar Das was leading by 4,924 votes over the TMC’s Becharam Manna, dealing a blow to the ruling party in a politically significant constituency.
Minister Snehasis Chakraborty was trailing by around 6,500 votes, while several other ministers, including Sujit Bose, Pulak Roy, Sabina Yasmin, Srikanta Mahato and Birbaha Hansda, were also behind their nearest rivals.
The trend assumes significance as the Mamata Banerjee-led government had relied heavily on its welfare outreach and strong local leadership network, with many of these leaders being key faces of governance at the grassroots level.
The results come amid a high-stakes electoral battle in West Bengal, where counting of votes was underway to determine the composition of the 294-member assembly.
Counting of votes was going on in 293 assembly seats, as polling in Falta in South 24 Parganas district was countermanded by the Election Commission. PTI PNT AMR NSD
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