KOLKATA: BJP’s heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday exuded confidence that the state’s Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee will lose badly in Nandigram. The BJP leader said this after casting his vote early as polling for the second phase of the assembly election began on Thursday morning.
Riding a bike, Suvendu Adhikari went to the Nandanayak Bar Primary School around 7.30 AM to cast his vote. Speaking to reporters, he said that he was “confident that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is contesting the elections against him from the Nandigram seat, will lose the polls.”
“I have a very old relationship with the people of the area. I have a personal relationship with almost every person in Nandigram. Pretty confident that I will win the election,” Adhikari said.
Adhikari said that people will cast their votes in hope of development of the state and not for appeasement politics. “Voting is underway, the situation is under control. People are hoping for development and casting their votes against appeasement,” Adhikari said.
He also hit out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, saying that youth is against her as they have been left to fend for themselves in terms of employment. “Farmers are also dissatisfied with her. She siphoned off the money intended for the Amphan cyclone. Nobody in Bengal is happy with her.”
He further said that if he goes on to win the high-stakes seat of Nandigram, it will be BJP`s win and not just his. Hinting at Prashant Kishore – poll strategist for the Trinamool Congress in the ongoing elections – Suvendu said his image has also damaged Mamata`s winning prospects.
He hoped that the voter turnout would be around 80 to 58 per cent in the second phase of the elections. “I appeal to people to come out in large numbers to cast their vote as the whole country is looking at Nandigram,” he added.
Voting in a total of 30 assembly constituencies from the districts of South 24 Parganas, Bankura, Paschim Medinipur and Purba Medinipur is taking place in the second phase of the eight-phased assembly elections in West Bengal. Out of the 171 candidates in the fray, 152 are men and the remaining are women.
Bureau Report
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