From the Darjeeling hills to the Sundarbans, Bengal goes to polls in its fifth phase

45 Assembly seats, the highest number in the eight phases, vote on Saturday.

Forty-five Assembly seats spread across six districts of the State will go to polls in the fifth phase of polling in West Bengal on April 17. Of the 45 seats, 13 are going to polls in north Bengal and 32 seats will vote in south Bengal. This is the highest number of seats going to polls in any of the eight-phase marathon Assembly elections. Thirteen seats in north Bengal are spread across three districts of north Bengal — five in Darjeeling, seven in Jalpaiguri and one in Kalimpong. In south Bengal, 16 seats are spread across North 24 Parganas, and there are eight each in Nadia and Bardhaman districts. The seats going to polls stretch from the northernmost point of the State in the Darjeeling hills to Basirhat Uttar and Basirhat Dakshin in the Sunderbans. Elections are being held in the tea gardens of the Dooars and also in the urban and rural settlements of North 24 Parganas, Bardhaman and Nadia. A total of 1.13 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes to decide the fate of 342 candidates.