QKolkata: High Stakes Battle For 8 Seats In Phase 4, And More

Your daily lowdown of all things Kolkata.

Voters wait in line to cast their vote for the West Bengal Panchayat Elections 2018. Image used for representation.

(Photo: ANI)

Stakes High As 8 Bengal Seats Vote In Phase 4

Stiff competition among regimented rivals makes this part of West Bengal prone to violence as eight Lok Sabha constituencies in the northern Rurh — Behrampore (Murshidabad), Asansol, Burdwan East, Durgapur-Burdwan (Burdwan), Krishnanagar, Ranaghat (Nadia), Bolpur, Birbhum (Birbhum) — go to polls in the fourth phase on Monday.

Political stakes are high in most of these high-profile seats where contenders have taken the polls to be a prestige fight. Four-time MP Adhir Chowdhury faces the toughest challenge on his turf when Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wants him defeated in Behrampore. It’s also a crucial fight for junior minister in the Modi government, Babul Supriyo, to retain Asansol. BJP is desperate to turn the tables on Trinamool in Krishnanagar and Ranaghat while Trinamool’s Birbhum president Anubrata Mondal is desperate to defend his fiefs Bolpur and Birbhum.

(Source: The Times Of India)

2. Gorkhaland Statehood Past Stalks Ahluwalia In Durgapur

The Darjeeling Lok Sabha election was over on 18 April but the Queen of the Hills has left its cool climes to descend on the plains of Burdwan-Durgapur, where the maximum temperature is hovering around 44 degrees Celsius.

Darjeeling has become a poll issue in the Burdwan-Durgapur seat, which votes on Monday, because BJP candidate SS Ahluwalia has migrated from the hills to the plains this time. For the past five years, Ahluwalia had represented Darjeeling in the Lok Sabha.

That past, marked by the demand from his ally in the hills for a Gorkhaland state, is haunting Ahluwalia although he can claim to be a son of the Bengal plains because he was born near Asansol.

(Source: The Telegraph)

3. Don’t Let Central Forces Inside Booths: Trinamool

Birbhum district Trinamool leaders on Sunday urged special central police observer Vivek Dubey to ensure that paramilitary personnel did not enter inside polling booths unless it was completely necessary.

Trinamool’s move comes in the wake of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s allegation that a section of central troopers were sitting inside booths in the Malda South and Balurghat Lok Sabha seats and asking voters to vote for the BJP.

Two Trinamool leaders — Birbhum district vice-president Abhijit Sinha and zilla parishad chief Bikash Roy Chowdhury — met Dubey at Suri Circuit House on Sunday morning.

(Source: The Telegraph)

4. Election Commission To Keep Birbhum TMC Chief Anubrata On Leash Till Tuesday

The Election Commission has decided to keep Birbhum Trinamool chief Anubrata Mondal under strict surveillance for around 36 hours and videograph all his movements till Monday’s voting gets over.

Sources in the district election department said all outdoor activities of Mondal were being videographed from 8:30pm on Sunday till 7am on Tuesday in the presence of a deputy magistrate and paramilitary personnel. Mondal’s mobile phone has also been confiscated.

The Election Commission issued an order to keep Mondal under surveillance on Sunday evening after special central police observer Vivek Dubey returned to Calcutta following his meeting in Suri with officials of the Birbhum district administration and police and leaders of various political parties.

(Source: The Telegraph)

5. In Asansol, Violence Won’t Have Last Word

Sagnik Mukherjee and Sohail Khan have just put together a record partnership of 90 runs to help their local team steal a victory over their opponents at Asansol Durgapur Development (ADD) ground but their feat goes beyond a sporting one. These budding cricketers are trying to bridge the chasm between Hindus and Muslims of Railpar area in Asansol that was the epicentre of violence in the wake of Ram Navami processions in March.

OK Road, heading west from Asansol Station, roughly divides Railpar into two geographical halves — Muslim ghettos are on the left and Hindu colonies on the right. Most residents are either associated with the Railways or the coal business.

In the aftermath of the violence, communication channels between the two communities shut down.

(Source: The Times Of India)

6. Hopes Weigh On First-Time Lok Sabha Trio’s Shoulders

Monday’s high-octane poll battle at Nadia has left the candidates burdened with expectations. The mammoth campaign has also left them with a few takeaways and a chance to feel the public pulse while building narratives.

For two months, former JP Morgan investment banker Mahua Moitra paced through the campaign in Krishnanagar. The Trinamool MLA is no tenderfoot in politics but facing the Lok Sabha polls is a different sweepstake. “Unlike in the Assembly polls, you have to meet as many people as possible. In an Assembly election, you can do that with a limited number of booths. But in the Lok Sabha polls, you must touch as many panchayats as possible,” she said. “More important are women who would walk from the kitchen to the doorstep to wave at you. But you cannot expect them to be present at a meeting under a tree.”

(Source: The Times Of India)

7. City Stand-Ups’ Poll Punchline: Reject Politics Of Hate, Vote With Conscience

A number of young stand-up comedians in Kolkata have joined forces to spread a simple message, and it’s no laughing matter: You must vote, but don’t let your choice be dictated by hate.

The message is aimed especially at first-time voters, who form a sizeable chunk of their fan base.

From slapstick comedy on different netas, mimicking accents and “trademark” body language of leaders to criticising their agendas and speeches — everything is fair game for the 50-odd community of comics, who have regularly been penning jokes, raising awareness about the ensuing elections and the need to vote.

(Source: The Times Of India)