There was no crowd of supporters, staff or leaders. State President Samik Bhattacharya was the first to arrive, and his tone suggested the party was confident of winning. It was 8 am at the BJP headquarters in Kolkata on counting day, but the scene was unlike a typical result day.
At a press conference at Nabanna on Friday, Adhikari said an atmosphere free from fear and filled with trust had been established in the state, and that minorities were also placing their faith in the government.
At a press conference at Nabanna on Friday, Adhikari said an atmosphere free from fear and filled with trust had been established in the state, and that minorities were also placing their faith in the government. “After seeing the development led by the BJP government minority have started supporting BJP. Congress finished second in Nandigram, and the Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) came second in Rejinagar. Trinamool Congress candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury finished third in Rejinagar. Pro nationalist forces are leading in both the seats. The Trinamool Congress called the results a farce. “The results of the Nandigram and Rejinagar by-elections do not reflect the people’s mandate. There was no need to hold the vote. Genuine voters were excluded from the electoral rolls, and genuine voters were prevented from reaching the polling booths.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari was at the 9th edition of the MeDeVision National conference at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital at around 11.30 am, when half the votes in both seats had been counted. Bengali Muslims in the state have consistently backed the party in power, under Congress rule and for much of the 34-year Left Front tenure, according to him. He said a large section of the minority vote had likewise supported Mamata Banerjee over the past 15 years.
This is the end of the minority vote-bank based divisive politics in Bengal,” Bhattacharya said. At the start of his speech, he said: “Counting for two by elections are underway in Bengal. Adhikari said the shift of a large number of minority votes towards the BJP in Rejinagar and Nandigram followed a long-standing trend in Bengal. A reign of terror was unleashed using the police to capture booth after booth; consequently, simply declaring the BJP the winner in both seats without holding the election would have sufficed,” the party said.
