The Election Commission had on 10 March announced the West Bengal election date 2019 for the seven-phase Lok Sabha election. Two phases of polling are over in Bengal and the state is heading for the third phase on 23 April.

Five seats out of a total 42 seats in the state will witness polling on Tuesday. These five seats are Balurghat, Maldaha Uttar, Maldaha Dakshin, Jangipur and Murshidabad.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC), which is in power in the state, is facing a battle on two fronts on almost all the seats from the Congress and a resurgent BJP.

A total of 8,023,846 voters will vote for 61 candidates are in the third phase.

Jangipur is a Congress bastion and was the parliamentary seat of former President Pranab Mukherjee, from where he was elected to the Lok Sabha on two occasions. His son, sitting MP Abhijit Mukherjee, is seeking re-election from this seat as a Congress candidate. He is up against Mafuja Khatun of BJP and TMC’s Khalilur Rehman.

On the other hand, the BJP is facing an uphill battle in the Muslim-dominated Maldaha Uttar where the TMC has fielded sitting MP Mausam Noor. Interestingly, Noor won the 2014 elections as a Congress candidate.

While the BJP gave the ticket to Khagen Murmu, a former CPI(M) leader, the Congress has this time fielded Isha Khan Chowdhury of the prominent Khan Chowdhury family.

In Murshidabad, another Muslim-dominated constituency, the contest is four-cornered. Sitting MP, Badaruddoza Khan of CPI(M), is up against BJP’s Humayun Kabir, Abu Hena of Congress and TMC’s Janab Abu Taher Khan.

Security has been tightened in all constituencies. There were reports of sporadic violence in the last two phases of the elections. A total of 324 companies of central security forces comprising 32,000 troopers have been deployed in the five seats where polling will be held.

In a scathing criticism of the law and order situation in the state, special poll observer Ajay Nayak had on Saturday said that the election scenario in West Bengal was similar to the situation in Bihar 15 years ago. The Election Commission on Saturday also removed Malda police chief Arnab Ghosh.

Bengal is one of the three states where elections are being in held in 7 phases.

While two seats witnessed polling in phase 1 of elections, three seats went to polls in phase 2.

West Bengal Election Date 2019 schedule

Phase 4, Date 29 April

Seats: 8

Constituencies: Baharampur, Krishnanagar, Ranaghat, Bardhaman Purba, Bardhaman-Durgapur, Asansol, Bolpur, Birbhum

Phase 5, Date 6 May

Seats: 7

Constituencies: Bangaon, Barrackpur, Howrah, Uluberia, Sreerampur, Hooghly and Arambag

Phase 6, Date 12 May

Seats 8

Constituencies: Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura and Bishnupur

Phase 7, Date 19 May

Seats: 9

Constituencies: Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Diamond Harbour, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin and Kolkata Uttar