Kolkata:
The results for the six-phase assembly elections in West Bengal will be announced today. It is one of the most keenly observed political battles in the country. The polls in West Bengal have acquired an extra dimension this time, with arch-rivals the Congress and the CPI-M-spearheaded Left Front stitching an alliance to throw a strong challenge to the ruling Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee. The BJP is also aiming to make an impact in West Bengal.
Mamata Banerjee thanks Shah Rukh Khan who had called and congratulated her earlier today.
Mamata Banerjee tweeted to thank Sonia Gandhi for her wishes after Trinamool Congress' massive victory in Bengal.
Election Results - West Bengal
Election Results - West Bengal
West Bengal election results:Trinamool Congress' Debasree Roy wins from her constituency - Raidighi
BREAKING:Mamata Banerjee has won from her constituency - Bhabanipur
West Bengal election results: Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal congratulates Mamata Banerjee for her win in West Bengal.
West Bengal Election Results - Rupa Ganguly of the BJP and Bhaichung Bhutia of the Trinamool Congress have lost from their constituencies of Howrah Uttar and Siliguri respectively.
'Congress has lost ground because it has forgotten its friends' - Mamata Banerjee to NDTV
'I am a commoner, an LIP - Less Important Person. I like to work with people' - Mamata Banerjee to NDTV
I am against BJP ideology, they like to divide and rule, our tradition is saare jahaan se accha...' Mamata Banerjee to NDTV
CPM-Congress thought the alliance would save them. They engaged in conspiracies, but there are some ethics in politics, this time all the ethics disappeared. I never name people personally but they vilified me personally: Mamata Banerjee tells NDTV
Update - Poll percentage for TMC, Left, BJP, and Congress as of 12:45 hrs
Update - Leads suggesting the result and change if trends remain constant:
Update - Leads as of 12:40 hrs
We may have ideological differences with the BJP, but we will always support on issues that are beneficial to the people of India. We will support Goods and Services Tax (GST): Mamata Banerjee
All elected members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will meet at 12:30 hrs tomorrow to elect their leader: Mamata Banerjee
Here are the highlights from Mamata Banerjee's press conference after leads show a comfortable win for the Trinamool Congress (TMC):
- 1) Last time we won 184 seats. It looks like we will cross the 200 seats mark this time.
- 2) Development is all we want for Bengal. There were lots of lies against us.
- 3) My happiness lies in the happiness of the people of Bengal. The people of West Bengal have voted for us by ignoring all the smear campaigns.
- 4) Last time we had been sworn-in on May 20th. Our victory this time comes on the eve of the 20th. For us, May 20th is a day of Poriborton (change).
- 5) Next Friday (May 27) we will be sworn-in. Will try and call the Assembly.
- 6) With this result, a sense of responsibility has increased within us.
- 7) Our dream is to make Bengal the best in the world, have good relations with neighbouring states, and development for the people of the state.
Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress leaders show the victory sign during a press conference in Kolkata.
Many things happened in this election. There were lies against us, people were restricted from voting. But they did vote, standing for hours in queues: Mamata Banerjee
We want to thank the people who are most important in this celebration of democracy: Mamata Banerjee
Update:
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been a surprise to all with respect to the election results in West Bengal. They have performed far better than they have done in the past. PM Narendra Modi has thanked the people of West Bengal and all the party workers of the BJP for their trust and effort.
Mamata Banerjee thanks Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his wishes on Trinamool Congress' win in West Bengal.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M) politbureau meeting under way at the party office to discuss the West Bengal Assembly Election result.
From Didi - V for Victory
Expert View - From the NDTV studio:
Huge numbers of women, young people seen in Mamata's rallies. Very important demographics: Arati Jerath
Narada, Saradha scams were seen as conspiracies: Shekhar Gupta
Even when I campaigned, I saw people were not unhappy with Mamata: Chandan Mitra
BREAKING:
PM Modi congratulates Mamata Banerjee on Trinamool Congress' impressive victory in West Bengal. He sent his best wishes to her as she is set for her second term.
Here's the overall vote share in West Bengal so far:
Kolkata has become the greenest city in India today, not for environmental reasons though. See for yourself - even the Rosogollas (Rasgullas) tell a poll story. Mamata Banerjee looks set for a second term as chief minister of West Bengal.
The streets outside Mamata Banerjee's residence are buzzing with the sound of conch shells, symbolising victory.
Counting of votes in full swing across West Bengal. Leads suggest a massive win for the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Here's how Trinamool Congress, Left front, BJP, and Congress figure in terms of vote share when compared to the 2011 elections. The BJP has done better than what the exit polls suggested. The Congress' woes continue as their vote share is reduced to a single digit figure.
TMC supporters paint the town green. Celebrations outside Didi's home:
'Thanda thanda, cool cool' moments of the day as celebrations get under way outside Mamata Banerjee's residence:
As Trinamool Congress' lead go past 200 seats, here's what experts have to say:
In the NDTV studio:
Outstanding landslide by the Trinamool: Prannoy Roy
The biggest charge against the Trinamool was corruption: Seshadri Chari
The Saradha and the Narada - but it doesn't seem to have had any impact: Chandan Mitra
Update:
Siliguri Mayor and former Left Front minister Ashok Bhattacharya (CPI-M) is leading by 1,873 votes from Siliguri seat in North Bengal.
Update:
Former state BJP president and national secretary Rahul Sinha is leading from Jorasakho constituency by 1,839 votes where the collapse of a flyover had killed several people on March 31.
Update:
State Women and Child Development Minister Shashi Panja is leading in Shyampukur seat by 4,667 seats, TMC candidate and former cricketer Laxmi Ratan Shukla is ahead in Howrah Uttar seat by a margin of 1,266 votes, state food supplies minister Jyotipriyo Mullick is leading by 3,164 votes from Habra seat.
Update:
Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) is leading in Darjeeling and Kalimpong seats. Prominent candidates of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) who are ahead are Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee from Baruipur Paschim Assembly segment by 4,378 votes, whereas state Finance Minister Amit Mitra is ahead in Khardaha seat by 589 votes.
Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) seem to have borrowed a popular line from Shah Rukh Khan. They say "thanda thanda cool cool, landslide win for Trinamool". Mamata Banerjee likely to sweep West Bengal for a second time.
CPI(M)'s Shyamal Chakraborty says they are "still hopeful of doing well" after Trinamool Congress (TMC) takes big early lead.
Mamata Banerjee swept the elections last time and now she seems to be doing even better: Prannoy Roy
In her own constituency, Didi currently #1 in a 3-way battle of biggies
If the leads stay the way they are, West Bengal seem to have made a clear choice - Trinamool Congress races miles ahead of the rest. The BJP too have made a mark - they lead in 11 seats at the moment.
How the numbers stand at 09:30 in West Bengal. Trinamool Congress races ahead. BJP leading in 10 seats comes as a surprise.
In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee has taken the Left's ideology, their tactics. What does that leave the Left with? - Siddharth Vardarajan in the NDTV studio
Not much, it seems. CPM leaders are trailing in their constituencies
Early trends show that Trinamool Congress (TMC) has taken the lead. Here is how they stand at the moment:
Leads at 09:15 AM:
CPI(M)'s Surjya Kanta Mishra arrives at the West Bengal CPI(M) headquarters at Alimuddin Street. Does not want to comment when asked about the party's views and expectations.
Update - Leading: BJP's Locket Chatterjee (Mayureswar constituency)
Vote counting update: The Trinamool Congress has taken an early lead. Of the 44 of the 294 constituencies where initial trends have been made available, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) had forged ahead in 25, while the Left-Congress alliance led in 16 places. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in the lead in 2 constituency.
At the state CPI(M) headquarters at Alimuddin Street, only a media contingent is present. Leaders expected to arrive after 11:00 am.
Mamata Banerjee, Not Seen Lately, Meets Key Aide Ahead Of CountingMamata Banerjee has not been seen in public since her last campaign meeting earlier this month. The Chief Minister didn't speak even after exit polls predicted a second straight victory for her Trinamool Congress in West Bengal after voting across five states ended on Monday.
All quiet at the West Bengal Congress office on counting day. Leaders yet to arrive.
A poster of Mamata Banerjee seen outside her residence. The Trinamool Congress is very confident of a win in West Bengal. A man outside Ms Banerjee's home says TMC will win all 294 seats. Though that seems unlikely, many in Bengal believe that the TMC will return to power with a clear majority.
The big contest in West Bengal today is in Bhabanipur constituency, where Mamata Banerjee (TMC) is up against Chandra Kumar Bose (BJP) and Deepa Dasmunshi (Congress). Chandra Kumar Bose is the grand nephew of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and grandson of Sarat Chandra Bose, elder brother of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
An Election Commission official has confirmed that as many as 20,000 personnel have been deployed for the counting of votes. There are 312 strong rooms, 294 counting halls, 294 counting observers and 90 counting venues across West Bengal. There are two micro-observers present in each hall, and one micro-observer at each counting table.
The performance of the Bharatiya Janata Party will be watched keenly. The BJP had polled a surprising 17 percent in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
It's a big day for Didi. Outside Mamata Banerjee's home in Kolkata, it's a sea of blue.
The Left front-Congress tie-up brought together Marxist veteran and former chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on the same stage. Corruption emerged as one of the the central issues in West Bengal.
A total of 294 counting observers have been deployed and 78 companies of central forces are on vigil to prevent any breach of peace. A three-tier security has been put in place at the counting centres.
Around 82.80 percent of the total 6.55 crore electorate had exercised their vote across 77,247 polling stations in the elections held over six phases on seven dates from April 4 to May 5.
The fate of 1,961 candidates, including 198 women, now lies stored in 77,413 electronic voting machines, that would be opened one by one after counting commences across 90 centres at 8 am.
Exit polls have predicted that the Trinamool Congress will retain power, with different agencies putting the majority figure ranging from a slender 155 to a massive 253 in the 294-member house.
The battle for the West Bengal Assembly is over 294 seats. To get a clear majority, a party needs to win 148.
The six-phase West Bengal assembly elections will decide the fate of 1,961 candidates. Leaders of both the Trinamool Congress and the Left camps are far from confident whereas for BJP, the election is a test of fire.
The results for the six-phase assembly elections in West Bengal will be announced today. It is one of the most keenly observed political battles in the country, the polls in West Bengal have acquired an extra dimension this time, with arch-rivals the Congress and the CPI-M-spearheaded Left Front stitching an alliance to throw a strong challenge to the ruling Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee. The BJP is also aiming to make an impact in West Bengal.
