Bengal Polls: The second and final phase of voting for the West Bengal assembly election will be held on April 29 after several weeks of intensified campaigning. The second phase is crucial for all the leading parties following record voter turnout in the first-phase voting held earlier on April 23. The constituencies in the second phase have been dominated by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in the last few polls. However, the opposition parties, including the BJP, Congress, and CPI(M), are contesting to breach the fortress of the ruling party.
While the Congress and CPI(M) could not open their accounts in the 2021 polls, they still managed to get significant vote share across the state. As per the data provided by the Election Commission, the vote share of the alliance between Congress, CPI(M), and the Indian Secular Front (ISF) exceeded the margin of victory in 117 of the total 294 constituencies.
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While the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC registered victory in 73 of these seats, the BJP managed to win 43 such constituencies. The TMC leaders stated that the ruling party will benefit if the left parties and the Congress perform well in the elections. They asserted that any division in the vote due to an anti-incumbency will help the Mamata Banerjee-led party.
While the CPI(M) secured around 17 per cent of the vote in Diamond Harbour, the TMC's victory margin was only about 7 per cent. Similarly in Howrah Uttar, the TMC won the seat with a 3 per cent margin, while the left's share was around 7 per cent.
"We want the Left and the Congress to contest well. That will be to our advantage," one of the TMC leaders was quoted as saying by the Indian Express. The CPI-M has tried to change its strategy by fielding the young leaders, especially from student politics.