The central forces, deployed inWest Bengal, will stay there for 60 more days after the assembly polls, Union Home MinisterAmit Shahsaid as he asked voters to cast their votes without fear of "Didi’s goons" in the final phase. The continued deployment signals the Centre's commitment to prevent possible post-poll violence in West Bengal.

"Brothers and sisters, go and vote on the 29th, do not worry about Didi’s (Mamata Banerjee’s) goons. The Election Commission has deployed CAPF at every nook and corner, and I am telling you that even though the BJP will come to power after the elections, central forces will remain here for 60 more days," Union Home Minister Amit Shah said while addressing a gathering on the last day of the election campaign.

The move is being widely seen through the prism of the 2021 post-poll violence in the state. After the results of the 2021 Assembly elections were declared on May 2, widespread violence was reported across several districts, with allegations of murders, arson, looting, assaults, sexual violence and forced displacement of opposition workers, particularly involving clashes between BJP and TMC supporters.

According to political observers, quoted by news agency PTI, the move is likely to serve three purposes;

1. It is likely to be aimed at reassuring anti-TMC voters and particularly BJP supporters in politically sensitive and violence-prone constituencies that they can vote without fear of post-poll reprisals.

In Bengal politics, allegations of post-election violence and intimidation remain a major psychological factor, and the BJP is seeking to neutralise that fear.

2. It helps reinforce the BJP’s long-standing political narrative that the TMC government survives through coercion, intimidation and electoral violence, while the saffron party positions itself as the guarantor of democratic rights and free voting.

3. It seeks to influence undecided voters and fence-sitters, especially in rural and semi-urban Bengal, where administrative pressure and local muscle power often shape voting behaviour. The underlying message is that the Centre will ensure protection, making it "safe" for voters to back the opposition.

Earlier this month, the Election Commission of India had said that as many as 500 CAPF companies will remain deployed across West Bengal for post-poll law and order duties even after the declaration of results. They will stay "till further orders of the EC," they said.

Each CAPF company comprises around 100 personnel. A record 2,450 central paramilitary companies, comprising nearly 2.5 lakh personnel, have been deployed across the state for the assembly polls. Of these, 2,321 CAPF companies have been deployed for the second phase of polling.

Source: India Latest News, Breaking News Today, Top News Headlines | Times Now