West Bengal assembly polls: With Vivekananda's flyover collapse, BJP builds hope

Rahul Sinha attempts to sway TMC's strength-make inroads into the Muslim belts

Constituency: Jorasanko
 

Date: April 21

Sitting MLA: Dinesh Bajaj (TMC)

Smita Bakshi

Party: TMC

Smita Bakshi became a councillor in 1995, followed by being a chairperson of Borough IV and Jorasanko MLA. Her husband, Sanjay Bakshi is a flourishing promoter and has been in politics for over two decades.

Strength: In the 2011 election, Smita Bakshi defeated her nearest rival Janki Singh of CPI(M) by a margin of almost 50%.

Weaknesses: Kolkata flyover collapse happens to be in Jorasanko constituency and ahead of elections; the incident threatens Bengal’s ruling party, and Bakshi whose family has been linked with the controversy. Their nephew Rajat Bakshi is directly involved in the project.The other worry for Trinamool is the surge in BJP's support base. 

Rahul Sinha

Party: BJP

Post 2012, Sinha has been re-elected for three years as president of the West Bengal unit of the BJP. As president, he led the party during the panchayat polls in 2013 and the 2014 General elections of India.

Strengths: He has been the face of BJP until recently where there has been friction between him and some members of the party. Moreover, he has the leverage of the flyover collapse.  In 2014 election, Sinha was ahead of Trinamool by over 16,000 votes.

Weaknesses: Poor organisational skills

Who will in? Rahul Sinha is likely to win on the back of the Kolkata flyover collapse