India is counting votes in a key election under the tight watch of security forces. In West Bengal, BJP may break the dominance of TMC for the first time.
New Delhi, May 4 (TASR) – Counting of votes in key state elections in India continued on Monday amid tight security. At the same time, attention is mainly focused on West Bengal, where the party of the incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi believes in decisive gains, TASR informs, according to the report of the AFP agency.
- Counting of votes in Indian state elections is taking place under strict security measures.
- West Bengal is a key battleground where the BJP expects significant gains.
- The BJP is seeking to oust Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who has been in power since 2011.
- Protests broke out over the erasure of millions of names of voters, allegedly from vulnerable communities.
- A BJP success would greatly strengthen Modi in dealing with economic and foreign policy challenges.
Elections to legislative assemblies and local government bodies were held in five Indian states and regions during April and May. Modi’s ruling party in the national parliament, the Indian People’s Party (BJP), believes it can succeed in opposition-held states.
In West Bengal, the BJP has made an intense effort to oust Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the leader of the All India Tri-Minute Congress (TMC), which has been in power in the state of 100 million since 2011, writes AFP.
Opinion polls last week suggested the BJP was slightly ahead of the TMC, although their results were very mixed.
The election campaign in India this time was marked by protests against the deletion of millions of names from voter lists, which were described as unauthorized. But critics say these measures have targeted marginalized and minority communities.
Before counting the votes, both parties expressed their belief in their victory in the vote. There was also violence in West Bengal during the last elections.
A victory in these elections would also strengthen Prime Minister Modi’s position in the fight against a number of economic and foreign policy challenges, including high unemployment and the still pending trade deal with the US.
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