Why this Bengal constituency has 2 EVMs at every booth
What's the story
The polling booths in West Bengal's Raiganj constituency—where voting is underway—have two Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) each.
According to the Election Commission of India, this was done as there are large number of candidates in fray from the seat.
"This time Raiganj...has...20 candidates...of whom 19 are men...It was not possible to include all names in one ballot unit.Hence, two ballot units will be there for the voters," said an ECI official, according to the Indian Express.
Security
299 CAPF companies currently in the state
According to data from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, there are currently 299 Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) companies in the state, with 272 of them being deployed for the three constituencies—Raiganj, Darjeeling, and Balurghat—going to polls on Friday.
The rest are on reserve.
The CAPF will be assisted by 12,983 state troopers.
The maximum allocation of CAPF companies is in Raiganj, at 111, followed by Darjeeling with 88 companies and Balurghat with 73 companies.
Sensitive area
Raiganj has the maximum number of sensitive booths
Notably, Raiganj has the maximum number of sensitive booths, at 418.
According to News18, the "Modi wave" is still widespread in Raiganj, particularly among the Hindu population.
Furthermore, the penetration of central schemes, albeit not fully executed by the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, has created a sense that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has worked for them.
Because the constituency also has a significant number of Muslim voters, small communal conflicts persist, resulting in religious polarization.
Candidates
Who are the candidates
The second phase of the election will decide the fate of 47 candidates, including that of Bharatiya Janata Party state president Sukanta Majumdar, who is eyeing re-election from Balurghat.
For the Raiganj seat, the BJP has fielded Kartick Paul, who replaced sitting Lok Sabha member Debasree Chaudhuri. Chaudhuri is running for the Kolkata-Dakshin constituency this time.
Paul will be up against Krishna Kalyani of the TMC and Ali Imran Ramz of the Congress Party.
Darjeeling
Darjeeling has 14 candidates
In Darjeeling, the TMC has fielded former bureaucrat Gopal Lama, while the BJP has re-nominated its sitting MP, Raju Bista.
The Congress has fielded Munish Tamang. Bishnu Prasad Sharma, the BJP's sitting legislator from Kurseong Assembly constituency, is running as an independent candidate in Darjeeling after being denied a ticket.
This time, Darjeeling has 14 candidates, 12 of whom are men and two of whom are women.