While West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wondered if the EC had announced the election dates as per the wishes of Prime Minister Modi and Amit Shah, other opposition parties questioned the motives of the poll panel.
“I have information from my sources that the election dates are similar to what the BJP wanted. Have the dates been announced in accordance with the suggestions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Interior Minister Amit Shah?” Mamata Banerjee asked at a press conference in Kolkata.
Left-wing parties claimed that the Election Commission had not provided a credible justification for holding eight-phase elections in West Bengal.
Elections for the West Bengal assembly will be held in 8 phases from March 27 to April 29.
CPM Secretary General Sitaram Yechury urged the survey panel to explain the reason for extending the Bengal surveys to nearly a month, while in other states (Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Pudducherry) it can be wrapped in a single day and in Assam in three stages.
CPI Secretary General D Raja said the Electoral Commission should have provided “compelling reasons for this.”
CPI (ML) Secretary General Dipankar Bhattacharya said in a tweet: “The five-day trial match in Chennai becomes a two-day affair in Ahmedabad. The one-day elections in Tamil Nadu span eight phases in West Bengal. Can any of you explain this numbers game?
The leader of Congress and former Prime Minister of Maharashtra, Prithviraj Chavan, wondered if there were “nefarious plans”.
“If voting for Kerala-140, Tamil Nadu-234 and Puducherry-30 (total of 404 seats) can be done in a single phase, why do Assam-126 and West Bengal-294 (total of 420 seats) require 7 and 8 phases? Are there nefarious plans? “he asked on Twitter.
The national spokesman for Congress, Jaiveer Shergill, also lashed out at the EC and the Center.
“On the one hand, the BJP government repeats the idea of ’One Nation One Election’ and on the other hand, EC announces the 8-phase election for Bengal, showing a big difference between the fictional world of slogans and the reality of implementation, “he said in a tweet.
Another congressional leader, Tariq Anwar, said: “I think it has been done deliberately and, in a way, the EC has tried to help the BJP.”
“They (BJP) feel that it will help them, but as far as I know, it will not be so about the people of Bengal. They are revolutionary in nature … they may deviate for some time, but ultimately, Bengal is Bengal,” he said. he told the PTI news agency.
However, the state leadership in Congress took a different stance and welcomed the EC decision.
Congressional leader Manoj Chakraborty said the elections should have been held in at least 10-12 phases, citing a bad public order situation in the state.
However, the BJP welcomed the EC’s decision to hold staggered elections in West Bengal. BJP National Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya said it was imperative to ensure a fair election.
“Along with the announcement of elections, antisocial elements will also have to be controlled for peaceful elections in West Bengal. Furthermore, fair officials should be appointed in every district of the state so that there is no unrest in the elections,” he said. he said in a tweet.
West Bengal Union Minister and BJP MP Babul Supriyo welcomed the EC announcement and said that it is time for a change in status.
On Twitter, he wrote: “8-phase choice in Bengal. I want a change, I want BJP in Bengal …”.
(With PTI inputs)
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