Kolkata election result 2019: City sports bandh-day look, tracks trends on TV and mobile screens

The deserted city streets on Thursday made it look like there was a bandh. Buses plied almost without passengers, kids played in alleys and those who did go to work spent the day glued to TV or cellphone screens, tracking the results of the Lok Sabha elections. Social media, too, was abuzz with users sharing and commenting on the trends.
While the state-operated buses plied in full force, private operators and most taxis, including app cabs, stayed off the roads fearing vandalism and unrest.
The conductor of a private bus that operates between Kasba and Howrah, Nutan Gogoi, said, “The number of buses from Howrah station on south-bound routes was scarce. But this did not create a problem because the number of commuters remained low throughout the day.”
“Our semester examinations start from Monday, but we took time out to track the results,” said JIS Kalyani student Tajesh Ghosh.
People on the move streamed the counting online on media channels or the Election Commission’s official website and tea stalls and bus stops buzzed with discussions on the results. There was hardly anybody on the streets in areas like Kestopur and Bidhannagar and commuters from Bidhannagar station rued the lack of transport. South Kolkata, however, looked more deserted than the north.
“The area around Jadavpur and Golf Green gave off a bandh-like feel. It was an interesting contest, especially between Trinamool and BJP. The Left being entirely wiped out reflects the weakening leadership at Alimuddin.” said Tollywood script writer Sanjib Banerjee.
The celebrations in pockets of north Kolkata started from the afternoon. Trinamool and BJP supporters took to the streets, decked in respective party colours and abir-smeared supporters kept an eye on the trends and took out victory processions even while the counting was underway.
Though otherwise not much interested in the suburbs, the city dwellers on Thursday kept a close watch on the vote counting for seats in places like Barrackpore, Durgapur and Maldaha North, which saw ups and downs every minute. “It felt like a game of snakes and ladders, really,” said Malabika Chatterjee, a retired banker.
“We are glad to see a tough fight in Bengal after a period of 10 years. Now that the opposition is tough, the government will finally work efficiently till the next elections,” said BCA student Vivek Singh.