Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will get more than 200 seats in the ongoing assembly elections in West Bengal owing to the BJP wave in the state.
Addressed an election rally in South 24 Parganas district, he said: "Some weeks ago, people of Bengal were saying that BJP will get more than 200 seats. But BJP's strong start in the first phase makes it clear that the voices of people have received God's blessing. BJP will get more than 200 seats in Bengal."
"During the second phase of voting today, people are reaching polling booths in large numbers. Everywhere, there is only BJP. There is a BJP wave in Bengal," he added.
The PM also said, "Didi's frustration has grown after the first phase of polling. She wrote a letter to many leaders of the country for help. Didi is seeking support from those whom she considers as outsiders and tourists and didn't give time for a meeting."
As per news agency ANI, the PM's comment comes in the context of the chief minister Mamata Banerjee writing to leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, MK Stalin, Tejashwi Yadav, Uddhav Thackeray, Arvind Kejriwal, Naveen Patnaik stating, "I strongly believe that the time has come for a united and effective struggle against BJP's attacks on democracy and the constitution"
A voter turnout of over 60% till 3 pm was registered in the second phase of polling which began this morning at 7 am.
In phase two of the elections, a total of 30 assembly constituencies from the districts of South 24 Parganas, Bankura, Paschim Medinipur and Purba Medinipur will go to polls.
There are 171 candidates in the fray in phase-II of West Bengal polls, out of which 152 candidates are men while only 19 are women.
Nandigram is all set to witness the most high-profile contest in the second phase where Banerjee and Adhikari are taking on each other. Adhikari had earlier pledged that he will quit politics if he does not defeat the TMC chief by 50,000 votes in Nandigram.
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.