West Bengal Assembly Elections: Record-Breaking Voter Turnout Amidst Political Tensions

The first phase of assembly elections in West Bengal has created history among the people. The polling held on 23 April saw a huge enthusiasm among the people despite sporadic incidents of violence. The state recorded a voter turnout of 92.9%, the highest since independence. The math behind the record-breaking turnout is the dominance of women. In 2011, when Mamata Banerjee ended 34 years of Left rule, the voter turnout was 84.72%. This record has also been broken. Women, in particular, have voted more than men: the process of deletion of names from the electoral roll (SIR) has become a major political issue. TMC and Congress protest: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has challenged the process in the Supreme Court. She has called it a step like the NRC (National Register of Citizens). TMC's stance: The party says that such a high voter turnout is the anger of the people against the BJP. People are afraid of the NRC and the NRC. Shah claims that it is the beginning of corruption in the Bengal Home Minister Amit Shah's party.