West Bengal: Preparations for the first phase complete, voting on 152 seats in 16 districts today

Kolkata: All preparations have been completed for the first phase of the assembly elections in West Bengal, and the administration is fully alert for the voting to be held on Thursday. In this phase, about 3.6 crore voters will exercise their right to vote for 152 seats in 16 districts. For this, nearly 44,000 polling centers have been set up, where special arrangements have been made for security and facilities.

This time, the electoral process is being completed in two phases, while in 2021 and 2016, voting took place in eight and six phases, respectively. Despite the decrease in the number of phases, no leniency has been shown in terms of security. The Election Commission has taken several new measures to ensure transparent and peaceful elections by issuing strict guidelines.

In the first phase, a direct contest is expected between the ruling Trinamool Congress and the main opposition party, Bharatiya Janata Party, on at least 80 seats. In addition, multi-cornered contests can be seen in several constituencies, as the Left Front and Congress are in the field separately, while some religious organizations have also entered the electoral fray, making the contest more interesting.

The districts where voting will take place include Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Cooch Behar, North and South Dinajpur, Malda, Murshidabad, Birbhum, West Burdwan, Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, and East and West Medinipur. A total of 1,478 candidates are trying their luck in this phase.

Extraordinary arrangements have been made in terms of security. Approximately 2,407 companies of central armed police forces have been deployed, comprising more than 2.4 lakh personnel. 7,384 polling centers have been identified as highly sensitive, where additional surveillance will be maintained, while quick response teams have also been deployed to deal with any unpleasant incident promptly.

Special arrangements have also been made for the convenience of voters, including Braille-enabled electronic voting machines, ramps, and priority queues for disabled and elderly voters. A toll-free number and email facility have also been provided for registering complaints.

The election has also seen a political controversy over the special revision of the voter list. The Trinamool Congress has alleged that a particular section of names is being removed from the list, while the Bharatiya Janata Party claims it is an exercise to remove fake voters.

About 91 lakh names have been removed from the voter list, including deceased, transferred, and duplicate entries. However, questions are being raised about the new criterion of "logical inconsistency," under which names have been scrutinized based on differences in spelling, age, and other details.

Overall, the first phase of voting in West Bengal is being seen as highly crucial and exciting due to tight security, political rivalry, and public interest, and its results can have a significant impact on the future political landscape.