The Prime Minister expressed confidence about BJP increasing its seat tally in the state in upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had won 18 out of the 42 seats in the state. This was a huge jump from its 2014 performance of only 2 Lok Sabha seats.
In the 2021 assembly elections, the BJP led a very aggressive campaign in West Bengal and went all out against Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool government. While BJP failed to unseat Mamata, it did manage to replace the Left and the Congress as the main opposition party in the state.
The BJP increased its tally in the state assembly from 3 seats to 77. The Congress and the Left parties, that contested in alliance, failed to open their accounts.
The BJP’s vote share in Lok Sabha elections has increased from 16.84 per cent in 2014 to 40.25% in 2019. This is only 3% less than Trinamool’s vote share of 43.28%. In the assembly elections also, BJP’s vote share increased from 10.16% in 2016 to nearly 38% in 2021.
The rise in BJP’s vote share in the state explains why Prime Minister Modi is confident about the party’s prospects in the state in the upcoming elections. The party has planned a mega campaign in the state led by none other than the Prime Minister himself.
Even before the Election Commission had announced poll dates, the Prime Minister had addressed four rallies in West Bengal – the first at Arambagh in Hooghly district, the second at Krishnanagar in Nadia district, the third at Barasat in North 24 Parganas, and the fourth one at Siliguri in Darjeeling district from March 1 to 9. He will be addressing another rally on April 4 rally in Cooch Behar. This will be Prime Minister’s first rally in the state after the announcement of the poll schedule by the Election Commission on March 16.
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, who has seen BJP make significant inroads in the state, is going all out to regain lost ground.
Trinamool faced severe BJP onslaught over violence in Sandeshkhali which made national headlines. The party had to suspend its leader Shahjahan Sheikh, who was arrested on February 29 after 55 days on the run following violent protests led by women, alleging sexual atrocities and land grab.
The BJP has nominated Rekha Patra, a housewife from the troubled region of Sandeshkhali and an alleged torture victim, from Basirhat which is a TMC stronghold on the southern-most fringes of North 24 Parganas district. PM Modi made a phone call to her to enquire about her campaign preparations and called her a “Shakti Swarupa”.
The Trinamool, which failed to forge an alliance with the Congress over differences in seat-sharing, is contesting all the 42 seats in the state. The third pole of this electoral contest is opposition’s INDIA bloc which includes the Congress and the Left. It remains to be seen who gains more from this triangular contest – the BJP or the Trinamool.
(With inputs from agencies)