As voting for the West Bengal panchayat elections will be held tomorrow (July 8), the big question on people’s mind is — Will the hot spots, which saw at least 15 deaths in the run-up, remain peaceful? At least 658 companies of Central Forces have been deployed and are expected to stay for 10 days after the polls, according to the high court order. The counting of votes will be held on July 11.
The number of booths stands at 61,636. Concerns are being raised as 658 companies mean 52,640 people, making it tough to have one Central Force personnel in every booth.
A look at the spots of bother:
BHANGAR
Three deaths on the last day of nomination made Bhangar the most vulnerable and ‘hot spot’ in the panchayat polls, amid the battle of allegations between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Indian Secular Front (ISF).
Locals from Bhangar say, “Bombing is the new normal here. While the Central Forces are present, bombing happens once they cross the route. We are not sure what will happen on the voting day."
The contest: Bhangar has two blocks. Bhangar 1 has no contest as the opposition could not file their nomination. Bhangar 2 will see a real contest. Of the six Zilla Parishads, four will see a fight.
The ISF, which is focused on minorities, is giving the TMC a good fight. Areas where the ISF is dominant, the TMC is not being allowed, and vice-versa.
The allegation is the TMC is intimidating candidates. Sources on ground say, “The Jomi Suraksha Committee backed by Ultra Left ideology also has their presence here. They have tied up with the ISF now. So the fight is between the TMC and ISF Ultra Left alliance."
MURSHIDABAD
With four deaths in the run-up to the panchayat polls, 72 companies of Central Forces has been deployed here. More than 1,000 were injured in the run-up to the elections.
The first death was reported from Khargram Murshidabad on the first day of nomination. On the last day of nomination, one death was reported in Nabagram. Two more deaths were reported in Nabagram.
Raninagar, Samsergunj, Domkal are the areas seeing tension.
The contest: In Murshidabad, the fight is between the Congress and TMC. Here, too, the Congress is trying to tap into the unhappy TMC minority voters. Murshidabad has more than 40% minority population.
Although Murshidabad has always been a Congress bastion, of late, the TMC has created a dent there. In 2021, the TMC did well there. For Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, it’s a do-or-die situation before the Lok Sabha polls.
COOCHBIHAR
Three deaths have been reported so far. One of them was the death of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker Prashanta Basuniya. Although the police has not confirmed that this was not due to polls, locals say it was a political murder. A brother-in-law of a candidate died, which police said was over a personal issue. The third was a TMC worker Babu Hak, who died in the remote Gitaldaho.
At least 31 companies of Central Forces have been deployed here.
The contest: It is a fight between BJP MoS Home Nishith Pramanik and TMC leaders. The last Panchayat, assembly polls and Lok Sabha polls, the BJP dominated this area.
BASANTI
Basanti in South 24 Parganas is also among the hot spots following the death of a TMC worker Ziarul Mollah. Another TMC worker Khagen Kutia, too, was shot dead.
From the time of filing of nominations, bombs and firing have been common.
The contest: Here, the fight is between the two groups of the TMC, BJP and Communist Party of India Marxist (CPIM).
NANDIGRAM
No deaths were reported in Nandigram, but it remains politically sensitive after TMC chief and WB CM Mamata Banerjee’s defeat in the 2021 assembly polls. A bomb has been recovered from this area two days ago, amid the prevailing tension.
The contest: There are two blocks in Nandigram. There are 17 Gram Panchayats, 2 Panchayat Samitis and 5 Zilla Parishads, all were won by the TMC in 2018. Then, Adhikary was with the TMC. The ‘Didi’ vs BJP’s Suvendu Adhikary ‘Dada’ is a battle of prestige.
BIRBHUM
Although TMC chief Anubrata Mondal is in jail, almost every thana of Birbhum has recovered bombs, with the death of Dilip Mahara in Mohammad Bazar.
The contest: Here, the fight is between the TMC and BJP. For TMC’s local leaders it is a test without Mondal, although they have put in extra efforts.
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