Assam Assembly elections: 'We will get more than 100 seats,' says Assam CM as he casts his vote

Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal on Saturday cast his vote a polling centre in Dibrugarh. Polling for the first phase of the Assam and West Bengal assembly elections began at 7 am on Saturday.

"We will get more than 100 seats," he said.

In Assam, over 81.09 lakh voters, including 40,77,210 males and 40,32,481 females, are eligible to cast their votes at 1,1537 polling stations in this phase. The polling will continue till 6 pm.

A total of 264 candidates are in the fray for 47 seats -- 42 seats from 11 districts of Upper Assam and northern Assam region and five seats from central Assam's Nagaon district.

On the other hand, in West Bengal, more than 73 lakh voters in West Bengal will decide the fate of 191 candidates in 30 seats. Most of the constituencies going to the polls fall in the once-Naxal-affected Jungle Mahal region.

The Election Commission (EC) of India has extended 30 minutes of the polling time for phase 1 of West Bengal Assembly elections 2021, following COVID-19 guidelines.

EC has made adequate arrangements and taken precautionary measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of 375 companies of security personnel including both central and state armed police forces like the Central Armed Police Force (CRPF) and State Armed Police (SAP) of other states have been deployed for the polls. 300 units will be active during the first phase.

Key candidates for this phase of polling include incumbent Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal in Majuli. Sonowal had wrested the seat from Congress' Rajib Lochan Pegu in the 2016 assembly elections. Pegu, who had won the seat for three straight terms since 2001, has again been fielded by Congress.

Assembly Speaker Hitendra Nath Goswami is in the poll battle from Jorhat, ministers Ranjit Dutta from Behali, Naba Kumar Doley from Jonai and Sanjoy Kishan from Tinsukia.