Kolkata: Thousands across Kolkata rushed to liquor shops on Saturday, forming long queues as they tried to buy alcohol before the 6 pm election shutdown.Anxiety and urgency marked the city’s liquor outlets as long queues formed outside off-shops, with buyers queueing up before the shops opened. Bars, too, stopped serving after a brief ‘window’ that…
Howrah: Before the second phase of voting, Sk Habib, a teacher and candidate from Humayun Kabir‘s ‘Aam Janata Unnayan Party’ in Uluberia South, joined the Trinamool Congress.Sheikh Habib said, “I joined Humayun’s party thinking he genuinely wanted to do something for Muslims. But you can’t understand everything from the outside. After becoming the candidate and…
Kolkata: In Tollygunge, the electoral battle this time is being fought as much across party lines as across a canal.The Tolly Nullah, cutting through the constituency, has emerged as a political metaphor, with opposition parties alleging that development under Trinamool Congress (TMC) heavyweight Aroop Biswas has remained confined to one side — particularly the Bijoygarh…
Kolkata: Identity politics is re-scripting the Vijay-versus-Vijay fight in Jorasanko this time, a coincidence that brings to mind the many roles played by Amitabh Bachchan in his movies in the 1970s and 1980s.But beyond the shared name, this is a contest shaped by local history, diversities, shifting loyalties, religion-based politics and everyday concerns in a…
Kolkata: Baranagar has emerged as one of the most closely watched contests, with Trinamool candidate Sayantika Banerjee and BJP nominee Sajal Ghosh fighting a prestige battle in a constituency that went to a byelection just a couple of years back. In that bypoll, Banerjee defeated Ghosh by 8,150 votes. Barely one-and-a-half years later, both candidates…
Kolkata: Bars across Kolkata saw a rush of tipplers on Friday, desperate for a swig after a four-day dry period since April 20, imposed due to the elections. Sales surged threefold at many restaurants even as another dry period commences from 6 pm on Saturday and continues till April 29. Some places ran out of…
Kolkata: PM Narendra Modi took a short break from his hectic Bengal schedule on Friday to enjoy an early morning boat ride on the Ganges, which he said “flows right through the soul of Bengal”.The PM, who had spent the night at Raj Bhavan, sprang a surprise as he reached Man O War Jetty (Prinsep…
KOLKATA: The record turnout in the first phase of Bengal polls has “sounded the bugle” for the end of Trinamool’s “maha jungle raj”, PM Narendra Modi said on Friday, linking people’s participation as an endorsement of BJP‘s slogan of “bharosa” (trust) over “bhay” (fear).Accusing Trinamool of “crushing the temple of democracy” in the state, Modi…
Kolkata: The Election Commission’s revised polling data released on Friday shows that Bengal’s first-phase poll turnout, besides breaking all records in percentage terms, has also increased in absolute terms over the 2021 figure despite the SIR process shrinking the total electorate.Nearly 24 lakh more people voted in the 152 constituencies spread over 16 districts on…
Walk into any well-designed restaurant and something shifts – almost immediately and imperceptibly. The light is just right. The music sits at exactly the right volume. The fork feels satisfying in your hand. But, none of this is coincidence. Long before the first dish arrives, the space has already started shaping your perception. The dining…
