The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has put in place an elaborate monitoring mechanism for the counting day, 4 May, with key central leaders stationed in Kolkata to oversee developments in real time.
According to party sources, leaders in charge of West Bengal will operate from a control room set up at the Salt Lake party office, from where minute-to-minute updates will be relayed directly to Union home minister Amit Shah in New Delhi. The central observers are expected to closely track trends across all 294 Assembly constituencies, including seat-wise leads and overall performance of BJP candidates. The party’s national leadership is keenly watching the counting process, with Shah himself monitoring the situation throughout the day.
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Senior central leaders Sunil Bansal and Bhupender Yadav will be present at the Salt Lake office on counting day. In the run-up to the exercise, Bansal held a series of preparatory meetings across Malda, Siliguri and Kolkata. These meetings were attended by state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya, along with district presidents, candidates and leaders assigned constituency-wise responsibilities. Party sources said the organisational structure for counting day has been divided into four tiers to ensure smooth coordination.
During Friday’s meetings, detailed instructions were issued regarding the roles and responsibilities of candidates, party workers and counting agents. On Saturday, district-level training sessions were conducted for counting agents to familiarise them with procedures and vigilance protocols. The BJP leadership has emphasised strict monitoring inside counting centres. Agents have been instructed to remain alert until the completion of counting and to ensure that no irregularities occur.
In case an agent needs to step out, a replacement must be immediately deployed to maintain continuous oversight. Leaders have also been asked to promptly report any suspicious activity and keep candidates informed in real time. At the same time, party workers have been cautioned against reacting to provocation. Meanwhile, even after the conclusion of polling, Shah has retained his ministerial deputy in the state. Union minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai is currently in Kolkata, overseeing arrangements related to Central forces and maintaining coordination on security aspects during the counting process.
