IN DEFEAT, BJP HAS REASONS TO SMILE IN BENGAL BYPOLL RESULTS

The Trinamool Congress has managed to sweep Uluberia Lok Sabha seat and Noapara assembly constituency, but the BJP is upbeat about its performance as its margin has gone up considerably.

The BJP stood runner-up in Uluberia Lok Sabha seat, polling 2.93 lakh votes. This is more than double of its tally of 1.37 lakh votes polled in 2014. The 2018 performance by the BJP is an improvement of about 600% over its 2009 tally of a meagre 42,443 votes on this seat.

The BJP was runner-up even in Noapara assembly constituency where it registered a 64% rise in the votes polled — 38,711 votes in 2018 as compared to 23,579 votes during 2016 assembly election. Compared to BJP’s tally of 7,594 votes in 2011 assembly election, the rise in 2018 is over 400%. The CPM stood third on both these seats. “BJP’s vote share has increased significantly as compared to past. The result would have had been different if there was no booth capturing,” BJP general secretary in-charge of West Bengal Kailash Vijayvargiya said.

“Some figures today #Budget2018 2014 BJP won Alwar/ Ajmer LS seats by 2.8 & 1.7 lac votes. Big wins to losses. And BJP trounced again in Bengal,” Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien wrote on Twitter on Friday.

The BJP could win just two out of 42 Lok Sabha seats its contested in West Bengal in 2014, but polled about 87 lakh votes with a vote share of 17%. Its performance dipped in the 2016 assembly election and the BJP could win just 3 out of 294 assembly seats.

NEW DELHI: THE BJP STOOD SECOND IN BOTH THE ULUBERIA LOK SABHA SEAT AND NOAPARA ASSEMBLY CONSTITUENCY