INDIAN STATE POLLS

First phase of voting held in West Bengal

Polls held in Kerala

AFP, Kolkata

Voting began yesterday in two of India’s politically key opposition-held states, with tens of millions casting ballots in West Bengal and the southern Tamil Nadu.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, the ruling party in the national parliament, is hoping to make inroads in the opposition strongholds.

In West Bengal, which has a population of over 100 million, polling opened in the first phase to elect members from 152 constituencies of the 294-seat legislative assembly.

The second phase, covering the remaining 142 seats, will be held on April 29.

Modi’s BJP has waged an aggressive bid to dislodge West Bengal’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the firebrand leader of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), which has been in power in the state since 2011. Mamata’s party won 213 of the 294 seats in the 2021 election.

In Tamil Nadu, which has a population of over 80 million, polling for the 234-member assembly is being conducted yesterday in a single phase, with the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam facing off against its long-time rival, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

The BJP, a junior ally of AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, has struggled to make significant electoral gains in the southern state.

Results for both elections will be released on May 4.