Campaigning for the West Bengal Assembly elections, the first phase of which is only five days away, intensified on Wednesday with the lifting of restrictions on the use of microphones.
A ban on their use was in effect in view of the ongoing higher secondary examinations till 5 p.m. on April 13, based on an order of the Calcutta High Court. The court, however, gave a temporary reprieve for the parties to campaign in north Bengal, where restrictions in accordance with the Model Code of Conduct will come into effect on April 16.
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has been campaigning in north Bengal for the past few days, as is Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary Biman Bose.
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee addressed two rallies in the city soon after the restrictions were lifted. All-India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi will start his campaign on April 14 and is scheduled to address five rallies. Congress president Sonia Gandhi will arrive a day after and address three rallies.
The Bharatiya Janata Party will also go into intensive campaign mode with senior leaders L.K. Advani, Nitin Gadkari, Arun Jaitley and Narendra Modi scheduled to visit the State from April 14 onwards. Most of them will be campaigning in the northern parts for now.
Alternative methods
To tide over the restrictions on microphone use, parties took to alternative ways of campaigning, apart from door-to-door canvassing, which was resorted to by several candidates, particularly first-timers.
Mr. Bhattacharjee addressed his first rally since the election schedule was announced in an enclosed area, where a more expensive box-system was used to broadcast speeches. Leaders of the Left Front have been holding similar meetings.
Ms. Banerjee, on the other hand, took to walking in processions that covered several parts of the city, before leaving for north Bengal.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has taken part in roadshows, particularly for his son Abhijit, who is making his electoral debut as a Congress candidate from Nalhati in Birbhum district.
Mr. Bhattacharjee has held several roadshows within his Jadavpur constituency also, driving past houses in an open-hooded jeep.
