West Bengal: In NDTV's special election show - Battleground West Bengal - Editor-in-Chief Sanjay Pugalia and a panel of top experts look at who has the edge in West Bengal during the Lok Sabha elections.
Here are the Highlights of 'Battleground West Bengal':
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I think there is a very strong mumur that Mamata Banerjee is playing exactly the same role that Mayawati played in UP.
Any party shouldn't be a beholder of a dying national party like INC. Why should TMC be INC's beholder?
Parties where workers, leaders felt they had no future, they switched to BJP, this is the reason BJP is doing so well, says Nishtha Gautam, Senior journalist
The ram mandir inauguration had an impact in Bengal. I saw saffron flags across the state, there is a developing sentiment, but whether that will convert into votes remains to be seen, says Swapan Dasgupta, Political analyst
When it comes to CBI, ED and other agencies, TMC should introspect before lifting fingers at others. When decision is not in their favour, they blame others, says Priyanka Tibrewal, state secretary, West Bengal, BJP spokesperson
"People are now fans of PM Modi", says Nishtha Gautam, Senior journalistNo one knows why the voter votes the way she does; it can be impacted by anything like dinner-table conversations or maybe a small mistake while voting. No one can predict what will impact a voter's choice.
In a state where no one knew BJP a few years back, people are now fans of PM Modi, says Nishtha Gautam, Senior journalist
Since 2019 till now, BJP has made a place for itself among the poor people. This is a big development for BJP and will help it. The big reason behind this are welfare schemes, says Sanjay Kumar, professor, CSDS
TMC is integral part of INDIA bloc, we are with the opposition alliance. INDI alliance in Bengal is TMC.
Whatever seats BJP will get in Bengal this time, TMC will get double of that, says Riju Dutta, Spokesperson, TMC
"In 2019, TMC got 4% lead over BJP in women, in men it was 2%. Female support is TMC's strong point. it is to be seen how BJP tackles that. There indeed is a neck to neck fight", says Amitabh Tiwari, political strategist
"Journalists are very happy when there 's neck to neck fight. Before 2019, the dominant narrative of CPIM of class were very important. But when BJP started, Kurmis became an important factor" says Swapan Dasgupta, Political analyst.
"Since 1971, no national party has ever won majority seats for Lok Sabha from West Bengal", he said
"There has to be some sort of unanimity on violence in order for it to stop", he further added
"I think it's a neck to neck fight in Bengal", says Sanjay Kumar, professor, CSDS
What is a different factor in Bengal?
"In 2019, Bengal was a state where regional parties were strong but BJP is challenging that strongly now. Even though that is not true for many other states, in Bengal, that's visible", says Sanjay Kumar, professor, CSDS
"I think it's a neck to neck fight in Bengal. There was just 3% difference between BJP and TMC in 2019. It could be repeated in this election", he added.