AGARTALA, Nov 4 - The by-elections to two Assembly constituencies � Barjala in West Tripura district and Khowai in Khowai district are all set to witness multi-cornered fights with five candidates each remaining in the fray, according to official sources.
Barjala Assembly constituency, a semi-urban seat, is all set to witness a multi-cornered electoral battle as five candidates remain in the electoral battle after scrutiny.
The five candidates in the fray are Shistha Mohan Das (BJP), Juma Sarkar (Left Front), Prakash Das (Trinamool Congress), Rajendra Das (Congress) and Bimal Das (Amra Bangali).
After conducting scrutiny, Returning Officer of Barjala constituency Samit Ray Chowdhuiry declared the nomination papers of all the five candidates valid on Friday.
Khowai Assembly constituency would also witness a multi-cornered electoral battle as nomination papers of five candidates were declared as valid. However, electoral battle will remain confined among four candidates � Biswajit Dutta (Left Front), Manoj Das (Trinamool Congress), Tapan Paul (BJP) and Pranab Biswas (Congress).
While Khowai seat has always remained a Left bastion due to strong organisation base of CPI(M), Barjala Assembly segment has troubled the ruling front for a long time. This time, the CPM-led Left Front appear to have an edge as the anti-Left vote bank would be divided among Trinamool Congress, BJP and Congress.
However, BJP is trying hard to ensure a strong show in Barjala by launching a vigorous campaign. Three Union Ministers including Babul Supriya and BJP MP Roopa Ganguly are all set to hit the party�s campaign trail after November 10.
The last date for withdrawal of nomination papers is on November 5, according to poll schedule. The two Assembly constituencies would go to the polls on November 19 while results are scheduled to be announced on November 22.
