BJP Seeks Central Forces for Bypolls in West Bengal

Kolkata, Oct 31 (PTI) West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh on Thursday sought deployment of central forces for ensuring "free and fair" bypolls to three assembly seats in the state.

The by-elections to Kharagpur Sadar assembly seat in West Midnapore district, Karimpur in Nadia and Kaliaganj in Uttar Dinajpur will be held on November 25.

"We have seen widespread violence in West Bengal during the last Lok Sabha polls. So, we want a free and fair bypolls in the state and for that deployment of central forces is a must," Ghosh said.

The TMC leadership, however, declined to comment on the issue.

Earlier in the day, West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar said the bypolls must be free from violence to erase memories of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in the state, which had created a "different" kind of impression.

The bypoll to Kaliaganj seat was necessitated following the death of sitting Congress MLA Parmathanath Roy while Kharagpur Sadar seat fell vacant after BJP's Dilip Ghosh was elected from Medinipur Lok Sabha constituency.

Karimpur assembly constituency also fell vacant after TMC's Mahua Moitra emerged victorious from the Krishnnanagar Lok Sabha seat.

The November 25 bypolls to these seats will be the first litmus test for the TMC and the BJP, since the Lok Sabha elections in the state and will indicate in which way the political wind is blowing. In this year's parliamentary polls, the saffron party bagged 18 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state, four less than that of the ruling Trinamool Congress.

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