Today in Politics: PM Modi to visit Bengal, likely to target Mamata, TMC over Sandeshkhali

March is upon us and we are a few steps closer to the Lok Sabha elections. This month will see the announcement of the Lok Sabha election dates but, before that, we have the release of the first list of BJP candidates, the last round of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visits to key poll-bound states, and the Opposition’s attempts to hold itself together.

First, the BJP list. The party’s Central Election Committee (CEC) met on Thursday night at its headquarters in Delhi and discussions chaired by the PM continued late into the night. The names of the first batch of candidates are likely to be announced in the next three days and could be out as early as Friday.

On Friday, the PM himself has visits to some key states lined up. Around 11 am, Modi will arrive in Sindri in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad district to participate in a public programme during which he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of development projects worth Rs 35,700 crore, including a fertiliser plant in Sindri, an NTPC power plant, and rail projects. He will then head to Arambagh in West Bengal’s Hooghly district around 3 pm to unveil and lay the foundation of projects worth Rs 7,200 crore, including Indian Oil’s 518-km Haldia-Barauni crude oil pipeline that has been developed for almost Rs 2,790 crore. He will also launch important rail projects and initiatives for strengthening the Kolkata port.

The PM’s visit to Bengal, where he will stay the night, comes at a time when state politics is in a churn over recent incidents in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district. Former Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman Shahjahan Sheikh was expelled from the party on Thursday hours after he was arrested in connection with an attack on an Enforcement Directorate (ED)