Thaindian News

Kolkata, May 13 (IANS) South Kolkata’s Harish Chatterjee Street, which houses Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s residence, wore a festive look Friday as hundreds of supporters thronged it in anticipation of a historic rout of West Bengal’s ruling Left Front.

Security was beefed up in and around the house, a tiled single-storey structure in a narrow lane close to the Kalighat temple. Police put up barricades and kept a watch on visitors, who included an army of mediapersons from across India and even abroad.

Every nook and corner of the locality has been decorated with giant cardboard cutouts of the party chief and the party’s “two leaves” election symbol.

The street has been decorated with green-coloured lights. Green is regarded as the colour of Trinamool while red represents the Left Front led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

Several TV sets and chairs have been arranged near Banerjee’s house to accommodate the increasing rush of party supporters.

There were unending resounding slogans of “Maa Mati Manush (Mother, Soil, People)” - Banerjee’s pet slogan.

A control room has been opened in the house where senior party leaders, including Mukul Roy and Derek O’Brien, are monitoring the results on television sets.

Banerjee has been watching the proceedings from her room in the house.

Banerjee is widely expected to become the first non-Left chief minister of West Bengal since the Marxists took power in 1977 and kept winning election after election.