LS poll 2019: Maldaha Dakshin remains one of Cong’s last bastions; can opponents win it?
Kolkata, March 25: The schedule for the 17th Lok Sabha election was announced by the Election Commission on Sunday, March 10. The election will be held in seven phases between April 11 and May 19 with the results to be declared on May 23. Of all the states in the country, West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh will witness elections in seven phases.
Here we take a look at all the Lok Sabha constituencies (42) of Bengal and how parties have fared there over the years.
Constituency: MALDAHA DAKSHIN
Date of election: April 23 (Phase 3)
The Maldaha Dakshin Lok Sabha constituency is a comparatively new one that came into existence after the now-defunct Malda constituency was bifurcated before the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. The seven segments under this constituency are: Manikchak; English Bazar; Mothabari; Sujapur; Baisnabnagar; Farakka and Samserganj.
What happened in 2014:
The Congress' Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury contested from this seat as the sitting MP and won his second successive term. Brother of Malda's iconic Congress leader ABA Ghani Khan Chourdhury who had become MP from undivided Malda seat for eight times, Abu Hasem received 3,80,291 votes while her nearest rival - BJP's Bishnu Pada Roy got 2,16,80 votes. The CPI(M) finished third with its candidate Abdul Hasnat Khan getting 2,09,480 votes.
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The Trinamool Congress finished fourth with its candidate Mohammad Moazzem Hossain receiving 1,92,632 votes. Abu Hasem's winning margin was 1,64,111 votes.
Total electors in Maldaha Dakshin constituency in 2014 were 13,43,851.
Vote share:
The Congress received 34.81 per cent vote-share in Maldaha Dakshin while the BJP got 19.79 per cent. The BJP's vote share was a close 19.17 per cent and the TMC's 17.63 per cent.
History of Maldaha Dakshin constituency results: A Congress stronghold
Malda has remained a Congress stronghold and in the past two elections in 2009 and 2014, Abu Hasem has won comfortably. It will remain the Grand Old Party's one of the best bets this election as well although the TMC and BJP, which finished second here last time, will look to breach the Congress's bastion.
Candidates contesting from Maldaha Dakshin in 2019:
- TMC: Moazzem Hossain;
- BJP: Srirupa Mitra Chowdhury;
- Left: Has not fielded any candidate from this seat this time
- Congress: Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury