Voting will be held on 152 seats in 16 districts on April 23 for the first phase of West Bengal Assembly elections. These include eight districts of North Bengal, three of South Bengal and 5 of Jangalmahal region. Voting during the first phase will start from 7 am, which will continue till 6 pm. However, in some sensitive areas the timings may be slightly changed due to security reasons (e.g. till 5 pm), but generally voting starts at 7 pm.

The first phase includes most of the districts of South and West Bengal. These include districts like Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, West Medinipur, East Medinipur and South 24 Parganas. Apart from this, voting will also be held on some seats of Kolkata and Howrah in this phase. There are many seats in these areas which are much discussed and are considered very important politically. Like Nandigram, Kharagpur, Purulia, Bankura and Jhargram. These seats usually see tough competition.

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Why is the first phase of elections special?

The first phase is also considered special because it sets the tone for the entire election. The results here give an idea of ​​which party can get the upper hand in the next stages. Especially a direct contest is seen between Trinamool Congress (TMC) and BJP. Apart from this, many areas falling in this phase are rural and tribal areas, where the voting pattern and issues are different from the rest of the cities. Therefore, the voting pattern here also appears different and this makes the elections interesting.

hot seat of west bengal

There are many seats in the West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 which are most discussed and are being considered as hot seats. The credibility of big leaders is at stake on these seats and the competition is looking very tough. Bhawanipur seat is being discussed the most. This seat is considered very important because Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is contesting elections from here. BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari is in front of him, due to which this contest has become direct and very interesting. This is being seen as a fight for power and prestige.

Panihati seat in headlines

Panihati seat is also in the headlines this time. This seat comes in North 24 Parganas district. This seat came into limelight after a recent major criminal case. BJP has fielded the victim’s mother Ratna Debnath here, while Tirthankar Ghosh is in the fray from TMC’s side. Because of this, elections here have become important at both emotional and political levels. Nandigram seat is also in the center once again. Earlier this area was considered to be the strong bastion of Mamata Banerjee, but now due to the challenge of Suvendu Adhikari, the competition has become very tough. Everyone’s eyes are on this seat. Many seats in Malda and Murshidabad districts are also special this time. The contest here is not direct but has become three-way, because Congress is also contesting the elections separately. Despite TMC’s dominance, the contest is considered interesting and uncertain.

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