‘Reaching Kolkata soon’: Shiv Sena will contest in West Bengal election – Hindustan Times

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday formally announced the decision of contesting in the upcoming election battle of West Bengal, scheduled to be held in April-May this year. “After discussions with Party Chief Shri Uddhav Thackeray, Shivsena has decided to contest the West Bengal Assembly Elections,” Sanjay Raut tweeted, adding a portion in Bengali as well.

This will not be Shiv Sena’s debut in West Bengal as the party had contested in the Lok Sabha elections from the state in 2019 and assembly election in 2016.

In 2019 Lok Sabha election, Shiv Sena had contested from 15 seats in West Bengal, including Tamluk, Contai, Midnapur, North Kolkata, Purulia, Barrackpore, Bankura, Barasat, Bishnupur, North Malda, Jadavpur etc. In 2016 assembly election, Shiv Sena contested from 18 seats but did not win any.

Shiv Sena’s entry in West Bengal Assembly election this year was being speculated as the party has dropped such hints after it contested in Bihar Assembly elections 2020.

With the BJP exuding confidence of wresting Bengal from the Trinamool Congress, the assembly election will witness a tooth-and-nail fight. What adds to these are the entries of Shiv Sena, AIMIM etc while Congress and the Left have decided to join hands.

Asaduddin Owaisi has already visited West Bengal for AIMIM’s poll preparations and has met Abbasuddin Siddiqui, a popular Muslim leader.

The Left Front and the Congress on Sunday said that their seat-sharing arrangement will be finalised by the end of this month. Congress state chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that his party and the Left Front will hold further parleys to finalise the nitty-gritty of the deal.

Left Front chairman Biman Bose said that though the BJP is the “biggest enemy of the country”, but given the situation in West Bengal, the fight is against both the TMC and the saffron party to save the state from communal strife and the “binary” that is being created among the people.