45 Seats To Go To Polls In Phase 5, Fate Of 342 Candidates To Be Sealed

The Election Commission has decided to deploy at least 853 companies of central forces to ensure free and fair voting, an official of the poll panel said.

Over one crore voters in West Bengal will decide the political fate of 342 candidates on Saturday, when 45 assembly constituencies go to polls in the fifth phase, amid a raging second wave of COVID-19. Security measures have been heightened for phase five in view of the violence in the previous phase, which witnessed the death of five people in Cooch Behar, including four in CISF firing. The Election Commission has decided to deploy at least 853 companies of central forces to ensure free and fair voting, an official of the poll panel said. It will also put in place measures to ensure strict adherence of COVID-19 protocols during the voting process, he said.