Kolkata, Jun 19 (PTI) Polling for the by-election to the Kaliganj assembly seat in West Bengal's Nadia district began at 7 am on Thursday, amid tight security arrangements, an official said.

Fourteen companies of central forces have been deployed for the bypoll, which is scheduled to conclude at 5 PM.

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The by-election is necessitated by the sudden demise of Trinamool Congress MLA Nasiruddin Ahamed in February. His daughter Alifa is the Trinamool Congress nominee.

The BJP has fielded Ashis Ghosh as its candidate, while Congress nominee Kabil Uddin Shaikh has got the support of the CPI(M).

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The bypoll is shaping up to be a triangular contest among the TMC, BJP, and the Congress-Left alliance, with identity politics, post-Murshidabad riot anxieties and a nationalist surge after Operation Sindoor set to dominate the electoral discourse.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)