Historically, violence marked all the previous Panchayat elections in West Bengal, with the trend always favoring the ruling party. However, this year witnessed a significant departure from tradition. Voters from most of the contesting parties – TMC, Left, and BJP – came to the booth. Although over 18 people died in violent activities incited by party goons, the polling percentage almost matched the previous record. It exceeded eighty percent. Districts where the opposition BJP and Congress have a stronghold, like Purulia, saw more than 85 percent polling. Similarly, South 24 Parganas had over 85 percent voting, where ruling TMC and CPIM were seen fiercely fighting each other. The party organs of both contesting CPIM and TMC claimed that people voted according to their choice. CPIM Party organ ‘Ganashakti’ claimed that people prevented TMC goons and voted in favor of their preferred party. Now, the state’s people are eagerly waiting to see if there are any surprises in store for them, or it will be a repetition of earlier one-sided results. The average polling was recorded at 82 percent, slightly lower than the previous poll.
MP CM initiates ‘tiffin’ with colleagues
In the upcoming assembly poll, BJP might not declare the CM candidate for Madhya Pradesh. This has created much confusion among the CM’s close aides. To avoid uneasiness, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan initiated a new gesture of meeting colleagues with homemade tiffin. The cabinet meeting is now being described as a tiffin meeting. The Chief Minister has requested all the ministers to bring homemade tiffin to the meeting. After the meeting, along with cabinet colleagues, all the ministers sit on mats on the ground and start eating their tiffin together. Sometimes they share their tiffin with other colleagues. The CM keeps an eye on the ministers who are not sharing their tiffin with others.
CM Gehlot wooes the Gujjar community
After the intervention of the Congress High command, CM Ashok Gehlot made a truce with political competitor Sachin Pilot. In the meeting, Gehlot told the leaders that he knew Sachin when he was two and a half years old. His father, the late Rajesh Pilot, used to bring him to his residence. Therefore, he has special affection for him. To please Sachin, the CM announced the provision of land at a concessional price to the Gujjar trust of Bhilwara and a hostel for the Regar Samaj of Bikaner.