KOLKATA: The BJP was leading in 24 Assembly seats while its rival TMC was ahead in five seats in early trends shown on the Election Commission website on Monday as counting of votes progressed across West Bengal.
The Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), an ally of the TMC in the Darjeeling hills, was leading in two constituencies -- Kalimpong and Darjeeling.
Initial trends reported by regional TV networks claimed BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari was leading in the Nandigram assembly constituency by a margin of 3,100 votes after the first round of counting.
Adhikari is taking on TMC's Pabitra Kar as his primary opponent.
The Election Commission is yet to put out figures for the Nandigram seat on its website.
"Out of the 14 booths where votes were counted in Nandigram in the first round, there were five Muslim-dominated booths. Even in those booths, the TMC is struggling," Adhikari told reporters in Kolkata.
He asserted that the BJP will form a government in West Bengal.
The leader of the opposition in the outgoing assembly said he was leading in 135 out of the 293 seats where counting of votes is being held.
Among the key seats, BJP candidate Lakshmi Kanta Sau was leading in Jhargram with 5,156 votes, ahead of TMC's Mongal Saren, who secured 4,180 votes, trailing by 976 votes.
In Kolkata, BJP's Purnima Chakraborty was leading by 283 votes over TMC candidate and minister Shashi Panja. In Monteswar, BJP's Saikat Panja was ahead of the TMC's Siddiqullah Chowdhury by a margin of 3,486 votes in early rounds.
From Asansol Dakshin, BJP leader Agnimitra Paul was leading by 6,271 votes over her TMC rival.
The saffron party was also leading in several other constituencies, including Dinhata, Gosaba, Baghmundi, Bankura, Durgapur Purba, Binpur, Nayagram, Rajganj and Bhagwangola, indicating early gains across regions.
In contrast, Deganga's TMC candidate Anisur Rahaman Bidesh was leading by 2,184 votes over his BJP rival.
The ruling party was also ahead in Kasba and Entally constituencies in Kolkata and Singur in Hooghly.
In Kalimpong, BGPM candidate Ruden Sada Lepcha was leading by 457 votes over the BJP's Bharat Kumar Chetri. The party was also ahead in Darjeeling, underlining its influence in the hills.
The counting of votes for the state’s 293 Assembly constituencies began at 8 am, with postal ballots taken up first in keeping with Election Commission norms, followed by the counting of EVM votes.
The high-stakes election is being seen as a crucial test for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party's bid for a fourth consecutive term, amid a stiff challenge mounted by the BJP.
Officials said trends are likely to change as more rounds of counting are completed, with clearer patterns expected to emerge later in the day.