Mamata Banerjee is contesting from Bhabanipur, one of the three constituencies which go to poll

KOLKATA (TIP): Polling for the three assembly constituencies of West Bengal began at 7 am on Thursday, September 30.  West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is contesting from the Bhabanipur seat. Besides Bhabanipur, the by-polls are being held in Jangipur and Samserganj seats in Murshidabad district. A total of 6,97,164 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the three constituencies.

Votes will be counted on October 3.

Banerjee, who lost from the Nandigram constituency in the Assembly election earlier this year, has to win this by-poll to retain the chief minister’s post. Polls had to be countermanded in Jangipur and Samserganj in April following the death of two candidates. As part of its elaborate security arrangements, the Election Commission has deployed 72 companies of central forces in the three constituencies, of which 35 are stationed in Bhabanipur alone, the officials said. Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC have been imposed within 200 meters of the polling centers. Long queues were seen since early morning outside several booths across the constituencies. Voting will continue till 6 pm. The polling centers have been stocked up with masks and sanitizers as part of the Covid guidelines, the officials said. Banerjee, who is also the Trinamool Congress supremo, is pitted against BJP‘s Priyanka Tibrewal and CPI(M)’s Srijib Biswas in Bhabanipur.

(Source: PTI)