Lok Sabha election 2019: A look at West Bengal constituencies: DARJEELING

Kolkata, March 17: 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: DARJEELING

Date of election: April 18 (Phase 2)

Since 2009, Darjeeling constituency comprises seven segments and they are: Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Kurseong, Matigara-Naxalbari (SC), Siliguri, Phansidewa (ST) and Chopra. This constituency is located across the districts of Darjeeling, Kalimpong (formed in 2017) and North Dinajpur in northern Bengal.

What happened in 2014:

In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, the BJP retained Darjeeling which it had first win in 2009. That year, former Union minister and BJP leader Jaswant Singh was elected from the seat. In 2014, he was replaced by SS Ahluwalia and he received 4,88,257 votes, beating his nearest rival former Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) by 1,97,239 votes.

The CPI(M) finished third with its candidate Saman Pathak receiving 1,67,186 votes while the Congress's Sujay Ghatak finished fourth with just over 90,000 votes. The NOTA option received 18,045 votes.

Total electors in Darjeeling constituency in 2014 were 14,15,168.

Vote share:

The BJP received almost 43 per cent of vote share in this seat while the TMC ended with 25.74 per cent. The CPI(M) got below 15 per cent and the Congress finished with a low 7.88 per cent.

History of Darjeeling constituency results: The BJP breached the seat which once vacillated between Congress and Left

The constituency of Darjeeling has gone to general election since 1957 and out of 15 times, the CPI(M) won it six times (1971,'80,'84,'96,'98 and 1999) while the Congress won it five times (1957,'62,'77,'91and 2004). It was won by Independent Maitreyee Bose in 1967 and by the Gorkha National Liberation Front of the late Subash Ghising in 1989. The TMC is yet to win this seat.

Candidates contesting from Darjeeling this time:

TMC: Amar Singh Rai; Left to support an Independent who is yet to be identified.