Shiv Sena Joins Fray, To Contest West Bengal Assembly Elections

Mumbai: The much-hyped West Bengal assembly elections just got more interesting.

Sanjay Raut announced on Sunday that Shiv Sena will contest the polls, scheduled to be held in April-May.

“So, here is the much awaited update. After discussions with Party Chief Shri Uddhav Thackeray, Shiv Sena has decided to contest the West Bengal Assembly Elections. We are reaching Kolkata soon…!! Jai Hind, Jai Bangla!” senior party leader Raut tweeted.

Shiv Sena had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2016 Assembly elections in the state, without any success.

They will again take the stage to fight the BJP and Trinamool Congress. Details of seats and candidates will be announced later.

Whether Shiv Sena manages to open its account in West Bengal remains to be seen. But it will look to eat into the vote share of the principal contenders.

While the ruling Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, is looking to win a third straight term, BJP is desperate to capture power in West Bengal for the first time. The Left Front, which ruled the state for 34 years before being ousted by Trinamool, and Congress have forged an alliance to deny BJP and Trinamool.

Maharashtra powerhouse Shiv Sena quit the BJP-led alliance to form the government in 2019. They also contested in the Bihar state polls last year but failed to win a seat.

Earlier, Shiv Sena contested polls in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, without much success.