That way in name, there will be a four- cornered contest in Bengal, but in reality, it will be a bipolar contest between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP with the third combination of the Congress-Left making its presence felt in less than ten out of the total of 42 seats. The BJP is making all efforts to increase its tally in 2024 Lok Sabha elections, it has the advantage of getting political gains from the latest series of corruptions resorted to by the TMC leaders, but the organizational infighting and sloppy response to the TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee’s spirited allegations against the central agencies acting as the wing of the BJP, have not been helpful to the party.

It was Dilip Ghosh, former state president of BJP and presently Lok Sabha candidate for Durgapur/Burdwan constituency who was one of the principal architects of BJP' bagging 18 constituencies in 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Even after Sukanta Majumdar replaced him as the chief of the state unit, he kept himself in the news with his takes on the functioning of the TMC government during his morning walks.

Things have come to such a pass that a peeved Ghosh after being shifted to Durgapur Burdwan did not have second thoughts in criticizing Narendra Modi’s 2014 Lok Sabha poll promise of depositing a sum of Rs 15 lakhs in the bank account of every Indian subject to certain conditions. Indeed the man who led the saffron camp’s triumphant poll campaign five years ago seems to have come at the end of his teether.

Some other victorious Lok Sabha candidates of the BJP are unhappy at the party's interaction with them. Debasree Chowdhury who had won from Raigunj in north Bengal and secured a ministerial berth found herself shunted to Kolkata (South). She does not know the area , the local BJP workers also are unhappy. Sulking Chowdhury does not know what to do.

Pitted against sitting TMC MP Mala Roy in a constituency once chief minister, Mamata Banerjee represented, the BJP candidate seems to have given up without a fight. Indeed the lack of enthusiasm of the BJP activists seems to be manifest in the absence of their processions and graffiti while the TMC campaigns and road shows are on.

Some of the saffron camp insiders are of the view that a combination of caucus and dynastic politics seems to be corroding the party. Underscoring their point , they cite the example of state unit chief Sukanta Majumdar retaining his old constituency Balurghat while Dibyendu Adhikari who is the brother of leader of the Opposition Subhendu Adhikari contesting from Kanthi which their father Sisir Adhikari who once represented.

Kanthi apart, Tamluk is another constituency of the Adhikari fiefdom in which former judge of Calcutta High Court Abhijit Gangopadhyay is contesting as a BJP nominee. He is pitted against TMC spokesperson, Debangshu Bhattacharya.

In the hurly burly of campaigning, the halo around the BJP candidate of Tamluk when he passed judgments accompanied with stinging observations seems to have somewhat dimmed. Even with years and experience on his side, some of his recent utterances have been "political unacceptables" unlike his younger political opponent from Trinamool.

Even Darjeeling Lok Sabha constituency, a pocket borough of the saffron camp has party nominee Raju Bista contending with former BJP legislator B P Sharma. Contesting as an independent, Sharma has resigned as the Kurseong MLA claiming his act as protests against a son of the soil not being made a candidate.

The BJP has nominated "Rajmata" Amrita Roy from the once ruling family of Krishnanagar against TMC's Mahua Moitra who has been expelled from the Lok Sabha on "cash for questions" charge. Moitra has taken an upper hand in the. poll campaign having seized upon the role of the BJP nominee's ancestor Krishna Chandra Roy in the conspiracy with the English to defeat Bengal's last sovereign nawab Siraj-ud-daula in the battle of Plassey.

If the charges of exploitation of women at Sandeshkhali within Basirhat constituency have shocked the state, the fact remains it is a small part of this sprawling Lok Sabha seat. While the BJP having nominated Rekha Patra one of the complainants is yet to send its activists all over Basirhat even as TMC has fielded old faithful Haji Nurul who won from this seat in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.

Truth to tell, unlike 2019 and 2021 elections, the wind seems to be missing from the saffron camp's sails. The blame for the unenthusiastic campaigning may be ascribed to the saffron camp not yet going hammer and tongs at the charge of cash for teaching jobs and the horrendous incidents of Sandeshkhali and fewer trips of Prime Minister Modi and Union home minister Shah whose frequency of visits in two previous elections galvanised the state BJP.

The ruling dispensation of Trinamool Congress seems to have emerged from its shell shocked state after charges of cash for teaching jobs, allegation of ration discrepancy and last and not the least exploitation of some women at Sandeshkhali rained on it. Arguably it is owing to the combined Opposition of BJP, Left and Congress slackening it's agitation on these issues in the wake of scathing observations from Calcutta High Court.

In the breather, just as TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee was kicking off the poll campaign, north Bengal was struck by a violent storm. Canny campaigner that she is, the chief minister rushed to the spot overseeing the relief work in s saffron stronghold and earning brownie points by displaying her lack of bias on the election eve.

In constituencies in which Banerjee is yet to address a rally, the poll campaign has been kicked off all the same. Be it Burdwan or Arambag, Diamond Harbour or Kolkata (north), the TMC candidates and their followers have hit the ground running.

Instead of replying to charges against the ruling dispensation, these campaigners are shouting the achievements of the state government from the treetops. Keeping in .mind the large number of women voters, the TMC campaigners are stressing the success of women centric schemes like Lakshmir Bhandar and Kanyasree.

Two defections from the TMC ranks into the saffron camp sent initial tremors which have since been stabilized. Trinamool MP of Barrackpore Arjun Singh is contesting as the BJP candidate after being denied nomination while TMC's Baranagar MLA Tapas Roy joined BJP after resigning and has taken on sitting MP of TMC Sudip Bandopadhyay in North Kolkata constituency.

Not being on the same board with the Left and Congress in INDIA coalition has served TMC well. While it has fielded candidates in all the 42 seats, the Left and Congress are at loggerheads in at least three seats of Purulia, Coochbehar and Ghatal.

CPI(M) state secretary Md Salim is contesting from Murshidabad with Congress cooperation. Given the electoral arithmetic and organisational muscle of Congress, he has a fair chance. Fielding several young faces, the CPI(M) seems to have dispensed with its image of an old fellows' outfit. Even if they fail to win, their presence will rejuvenate the party for the 2026 assembly polls.

Of the Congress strongholds Behrampore and a seat in Malda, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is sitting pretty in the former while Isha Khan Chowdhury is on thin ice in the latter. Apparently not a major player, Indian Secular Front candidates pose a threat of turning out to be "spoilers" by reducing a lead which could have been enlarged into a victory margin especially in minority dominated constituencies. However, ISF leader Naushad Siddiqui not contesting against TMC national general secretary and the chief minister's nephew Abhishek Banerjee from Diamond Harbour seems to have relieved the latter.

West Bengal is going to polls in seven phases till June 1. The campaign will further pick up and new issues might come up. Senior leaders including the Prime Minister will be visiting the state many times during the polling period. It is to be seen how the last minute swings work and which party gets the benefit. (IPA Service)