West Bengal Elections 2021 Phase 6 Voting Live: PM Narendra Modi appeals to voters to exercise their franchise

West Bengal Assembly Election Phase 6 Polling Live Updates: Polling is underway in the sixth phase of polls in West Bengal today. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today urged the voters to exercise their franchise in the 6th phase. “The people of West Bengal are voting to elect a new assembly. On the sixth phase today, urging those whose seats are polling to exercise their franchise,” he said in a tweet. The polling began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm. Voting is being held at 14,480 polling stations in the 43 assembly segments of the four districts. Over one crore voters will decide the fate of 306 candidates from 43 assembly constituencies. Of these 43 seats, the Matua community will be key in about 17 constituencies. Both the TMC and the BJP have pitched hard to gain the confidence of Matuas, who make for a large chunk of the state’s Scheduled Caste population, in most of the 17 assembly segments going to polls in this phase in North 24 Parganas district and some of the nine seats in Nadia. Apart from these constituencies, elections will be held in nine seats in the Uttar Dinajpur district and eight in Purba Bardhaman.

Security measures have been heightened in view of the violence in the previous phases, particularly the death of five people in Cooch Behar in the fourth phase of polling on April 10. The Election Commission has decided to deploy at least 1,071 companies of central forces in the sixth phase to ensure free and fair voting. The Election Commission has already curtailed the campaigning period and has extended the silence period from 48 hours to 72 hours for the remaining three phases to contain the COVID-19 cases in the state. So far, voting for 180 constituencies has been completed. Votes will be counted on May 2. Prominent names in the sixth phase election include BJP’s national vice president Mukul Roy, TMC ministers Jyotipriyo Mallick, Chandrima Bhattacharya, CPI(M) leader Tanmay Bhattacharya, TMC candidate and film director Raj Chakraborty and actor-turned-politician Koushani Mukherjee.