Balurghat Lok Sabha Election 2024: As the Lok Sabha elections draws near, states like West Bengal are politically charged up to contest in the polls. In Bengal's, Balurghat the key contest is between Bhartiya Janta Party's Sukanta Majumdar and Trinamool Congress leader Biplab Mitra. This is one of the state's 42 Lok Sabha seats scheduled to go to polls this year.
BJP fields Sukanta Majumdar
BJP has fielded sitting MP Sukanta Majumdar. Majumdar is the 10th state president of the BJP, West Bengal. He is also a professor of Botany at the University of Gour Banga. He had won the seat by securing 5,39,317 votes in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Majumdar had one the seat by defeating TMC's Arpita Ghosh by a margin of 33,293 votes. BJP had fielded Bishwapriya Roychowdhury in the 2014 general elections who had lost the seat to AITC's Arpita Ghosh.
Biplab Mitra is TMC's choice
The Minister of Consumer Affairs of West Bengal Biplab Mitra has been fielded by the Trinamool Congress. Mitra is a veteran party leader of South Dinajpur. He had joined the Bhartiya Janta Party after leaving the All India Trinamool Congress in June 2019 after the Lok Sabha polls. Later in July 2020, he left BJP and returned back to TMC and won the 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly Election and elected as an MLA.
How many Lok Sabha constituencies are there in West Bengal?
West Bengal is the state with the third highest number of states with 42 Lok Sabha seats, only behind Uttar Pradesh with 80 and Maharashtra with 48, and all the seats are typically contested over different issues rather than one common mantra. Notably, out of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, 30 seats are contested as unreserved seats, while ten seats are reserved for SC candidates and two seats are reserved for ST candidates.
When are the Lok Sabha elections going to take place?
The Election Commisson of India (ECI) is yet to announce the dates for the upcoming Lok Sabha eletcions. Although, polls have been predicted to take place between the months of April and May. In 2019, general elections were held in seven phases in the state. This time polling is likely to take place in seven to ten phases.
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