West Bengal to go to #LokSabhaElections2019 in seven phases. Two Parliament seats go to polls on 11 April in the fi… https://t.co/Y9sAKiVvTe — TOI Kolkata (@TOIKolkata) 1552221422000 NEW DELHI: The Election Commission announced the schedule for Lok Sabha elections 2019 on Sunday evening.West Bengal will see staggered Lok Sabha elections spread over all seven phases starting from April 11 to May 19, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sunil Arora announced.Two Parliament seats in state will go to polls on 11 April in the first phase, three seats on 18 April, five seats on 23 April, eight seats on 29 April, seven seats on 6 May, eight seats on 12 May and nine seats on May 19.The seven phases for polling will be held on April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19. Counting of votes will be done on May 23.The Model Code of Conduct comes into effect immediately after the announcement. VVPATs will be used with EVMs at all polling stations in the country.Assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim will be held with Lok Sabha polls. Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will not be held along with the LS polls.The number of total electorate in the general elections is expected to be 900 million, of which 15 million voters are in the age group of 18-19 years. There will be approximately 10 lakh polling stations across the country as compared to 9 lakh polling stations in 2014.<doc-sep>The West Bengal Lok Sabha Elections 2019 schedule was announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday. While voting will be held in the state on April 11, 18, 23, 29, May 6, 12 and 19, the counting of votes will take place on May 23. The schedule for General Elections 2019 was announced by Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora today. Out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats, 42 are in West Bengal. Lok Sabha Elections 2019 Schedule Announcement by ECI Live News Updates. The Model Code of Conduct has come into place in the state from today. This election, the ECI said that the social media campaigning of political parties and candidates will also come under scrutiny. Lok Sabha Elections 2019 Schedule: Voting In 7 Phases From April 11 to May 19, Counting And Results On May 23; Check All Dates For General Elections. Lok Sabha Elections 2019 Schedule And Dates: Voting In 7 Phases, Results On May 23 (Watch Video): In phase 1 on April 11, voting will take place on two seats in West Bengal. In phase 2 on April 18, voting will take place on three seats. In phase 3 on April 23, voting will take place on five seats. In phase 4 on April 29, voting will take place on eight seats. In phase 5 on May 6, voting will take place on seven seats. In phase 6 on May 12, voting will take place on eight seats. In phase 7 on May 19, voting will take place on nine seats. Phase-wise Constituency-wise Election Dates In West Bengal Phase I (Voting on April 11): Coochbehar, Alipurduars Phase II (Voting on April 18): Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Raiganj Phase III (Voting on April 23): Balurghat, Maldaha Uttar, Maldaha Dakshin, Jangipur, Murshidabad Phase IV (Voting on April 29): Baharampur, Krishnanagar, Ranaghat, Bardhaman Purba, Bardhaman - Durgapur, Asansol, Bolpur, Birbhum Phase V (Voting on May 6): Bangaon, Barrackpur, Howrah, Uluberia, Sreerampur, Hooghly, Arambag Phase VI (Voting on May 12): Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura, Bishnupur Phase VII (Voting on May 19): Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Diamond Harbour, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin, Kolkata Uttar In the Lok Sabha Elections 2014, the Trinamool Congress had bagged 34 out of the 42 Parliamentary seats in the state. The Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will be held in the country from April 11 to May 23. Voting for the national polls will be held in seven phases from April 11 to May 19. The counting of votes will be held on May 23. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 10, 2019 06:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).<doc-sep>West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. (Express photo Shashi Ghosh) West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. (Express photo Shashi Ghosh) The Trinamool Congress Sunday said that the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal will cause a lot of inconvenience to the people of the state, even as the BJP welcomed the Election Commission’s decision saying that it reflects the “deteriorating” law and order situation under TMC rule. Lok Sabha elections in the state will begin on April 11 and polling would be held over seven phases, followed by counting of votes for all seats on May 23, the Election Commission announced on Sunday. Video: Why First-time Voters Are Important In This Lok Sabha Elections Senior TMC leader and state minister Firhad Hakim said that the BJP had submitted a false data on the law and order situation in the state to the Election Commission (EC) which forced the poll panel to declare a seven-phase poll for the state. “This prolonged polling process will cause a lot of inconvenience to the people, especially those from the minority communities as the elections will be held in the month of Ramzan,” said Hakim. Explained A new test for political parties The seven-phase polls in West Bengal will be a test for all the political parties as they have never experienced a prolonged election schedule before. In 2014, Lok Sabha polls were held in five phases in the state. The Assembly polls in 2016 too was held in five phases. A prolonged election schedule means that all the parties will have to rethink their strategies and prepare for rigorous campainging across the state for more number of days. This will also pose a challenge to their organisational abilities to sustain the prolonged schedule. The state Congress too urged the EC to reconsider its decision to hold polls in the month of Ramzan. “People belonging to the minority community will suffer a lot during elections as three of the seven phases are falling in the month of Ramzan. The EC should reconsider its decision,” State Congress president Somen Mitra Somen Mitra said. Targeting the BJP, he said, “The BJP is very happy that the election will be held with the help of the central forces. But the same was used in 2014 Lok Sabha polls too and we had won 34 seats. The central government has intentionally misled the EC with wrong inputs about the law and order situation in the state.” The TMC leader further said that the time, however, will help their party supremo to campaign outside Bengal against the BJP. “We know how to fight. We will defeat the BJP as people are with Mamata Banerjee,” he added. READ | West Bengal Lok Sabha Election 2019 Dates, Schedule: Polls to be held in seven phases across Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has convened a core committee meeting of her party on Tuesday where she is likely to finalise her party candidates. Welcoming the EC’s decision, BJP national secretary Rahul Sinha said, “This is the first time that Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal will be held in seven phases. This is a clear indication that a state of lawlessness prevails in the state and polls are not being held peacefully. The election will be held with the help of the central armed forces.” He also alleged that the TMC is indulging in communal politics by saying that the long election season will cause inconvenience to the people from the minority community. “Why is TMC worried over a seven-phase election? By raising the issue of the minorities, the TMC is indulging in communal politics. They are talking about Ramzan month to get Muslim votes. They want to polarise the voters. Last year, the panchayat polls were also held during the Ramzan month. I will appeal to the people not to support this kind of politics,” Sinha added. The BJP, too, has convened a meeting on Monday to finalise its candidates for West Bengal. Left Front chairman Biman Bose urged the EC to ensure adequate security during the election. “The question is not about the phases, but whether it could be held peacefully. We want the EC to ensure free, fair and peaceful polls,” Bose said. The CPM leader added that they will announce their list of candidates on Wednesday. The party has already announced its candidates for Raiganj and Murshidabad constituencies. Meanhile, Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal Ariz Aftab said that the EC will take adequate measures to ensure free, fair and peaceful polls. “The elections will be held in seven phases in West Bengal. We will provide all facilities. We have adequate number of EVMs and VVPATs. We will also reserve additional EVMs in case of malfunctions. We have flying squad, static surveillance team and complaint redressal system. We will deploy adequate number of security forces to hold a peaceful election,” said Aftab.<doc-sep>The Congress, sources said, wants to contest around 20 of Bengal's 42 Lok Sabha seats (Representational) The Congress' West Bengal unit is upset with CPM as both the parties are keen on contesting Raiganj and Murshidabad Lok Sabha constituencies, leading to an impasse in seat-sharing talks between them. The Raiganj and Murshidabad parliamentary seats are held by the CPI(M). These are the only two seats that the Left has in West Bengal, its erstwhile stronghold. A senior Congress leader said, "We want to contest in those two seats. Raiganj and Murshidabad have always been stronghold of the Congress. The CPI(M) won them in 2014 due to four-cornered contest." The CPI(M) has to be practical and need to understand that it can't win these two seats without the support of the Congress. The political situation has changed a lot since 2014, another Congress leader said. The CPI(M) on the other hand does not want to relinquish the seats and Mohammed Salim and Badaruddoza Khan, its MPs from Raiganj and Murshidabad seats are keen on contesting the seats this time too. "These two are our seats. If we let go these seats it will have a negative impact on the morale of party cadres," a senior CPI(M) leader said. Congress leader Pardip Bhattacharya and Abdul Mannan last week held few round of talks with CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty and Rabin Deb for seat sharing. According to Congress sources, state unit president Somen Mitra and CPI(M) state secretary Surya Kanta Mishra will sit for talks within the next week. Mr Mitra sounded hopeful on the matter and said it's too early to comment. The Congress, sources said, wants to contest around 20 of the state's 42 Lok Sabha seats, and the Left Front, which has to distribute seats among its constituents, is keen on fielding candidates in at least 26-28 seats. The Congress won four seats in 2014. Mausam Benazir Noor, the Congress MP from Malda, defected to the TMC in January.<doc-sep>
Availability of forces was the most crucial reason in deciding the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal, Chief Electoral Officer Ariz Aftab said Sunday.Besides, there were "other issues", Aftab said without elaborating it. The country will go for Lok Sabha election in seven phases between April 11 and May 19, and West Bengal will have its share of polls in each of those seven days.Counting of votes will be held on May 23. The opposition parties of the state claimed that the seven-phase polls reflects the "deteriorating" law and order situation under the Trinamool Congress rule, while the ruling party alleged that Centre has "misled" the Election Commission about the situation in the state. Polls will be held for two seats on April 11, three on April 18, five on April 23, eight on April 29 seven on May 6, eight on May 12, and nine on May 19.Aftab said while polling will be held in Coochbehar and Alipurduar in the first phase, and Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling and Raiganj in the second. The third phase polls will witness voting in Balurghat, Malda North, Malda South, Jangipur and Murshidabad.There will be higher number of constituencies in the next four phase polls. For the fourth phase, polling will be held in Baharampur, Krishnanagar, Ranaghat, Bardhaman Purba, Bardhaman-Durgapur, Asansol, Bolpur and Birbhum.The fifth phase will witness voting in Bongaon, Barrackpore, Howrah, Uluberia, Srirampore, Hooghly, Arambag. For he sixth phase, it will be held in Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura, Bishnupur. The seventh and last phase polls on May 19 will be held in Kolkata and two neighbouring districts. The seats are Dumdum, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin, Kolkata Uttar, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur and Diamond Harbour. The CEO said with the announcement of dates, model code of conduct comes into force with immediate effect. He said an estimated 6.97 crore voters were eligible to exercise their franchise in 78,799 polling stations across the state.There will be Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) in all the polling stations, the CEO said. To a question the CEO said the process to identify vulnerable polling stations was still on. "We will shortly sit with all the political parties to ensure smooth and fair polls," he said.