Kolkata: As early trends in the West Bengal Assembly election counting indicated a strong surge by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asserted that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will "win after sunset" and urged party workers to remain confident, Scroll reported.
At around 1.40 pm, the BJP was leading in 192 constituencies, while the TMC was ahead in 94. The majority mark in the 294-member Assembly stands at 148 seats.
Dismissing reports suggesting a BJP victory, Banerjee described them as misleading and alleged that such narratives were being deliberately spread as part of a broader political strategy. She instructed party counting agents and candidates not to leave counting centres, maintaining that early rounds of counting tended to favour BJP votes.
“I want to tell all our counting agents not to lose hope,” Scroll quoted her. “I had told you before that we would win after sunset. There are many rounds of counting left. Wait and watch. Do not get scared.”
Banerjee further claimed that in several constituencies counting had either been halted or trends showing TMC leads were not being properly disclosed. She alleged that in many seats where her party was ahead, the data was not being reflected accurately.
Raising concerns about the conduct of the election process, the TMC chief also accused the Election Commission of undue influence through the deployment of central paramilitary forces.
As counting continued, the TMC reiterated allegations of irregularities, citing delays and a lack of transparency in the release of official trends.