NEW DELHI, Feb 14: The shadow of violence loomed menacingly as campaigning ended this evening for the first phase of the Congress-BJP face-off. Security forces in Assam, Tripura, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were put on alert for Monday's polling as the election toll crossed 40 following today's bomb blasts in Tamil Nadu.In Bihar, district magistrates in all 34 constituencies where polls are scheduled in the first round were empowered to issue shoot-at-sight orders while in Assam, there is acute anxiety over threats from ULFA extremists who have called for a boycott.Monday's round will cover 222 constituencies spread over 20 states and union territories and will seal the fate of a host of high-profile leaders including Prime Minister IK Gujral, former Prime Ministers Deve Gowda and Chandra Shekhar, BSP stalwarts Kanshi Ram and Mayawati and Bihar strongman Laloo Yadav.It particularly crucial for the BJP-led alliance whose strongholds in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi fall inthe first phase of polling. The turnout in these constituencies could determine whether the next Lok Sabha will see in a BJP coalition government or not.A high turnout on polling day usually indicates an anti-establishment mood. The Congress party's hopes thus rest on getting as many voters out on Monday as possible.The United Front, which is under serious threat from a resurgent Congress led by Sonia Gandhi and a formidable challenge posed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee's towering image, is equally vulnerable in this round. Half the seats in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are also on Monday's schedule, many of which are held by the present ruling combine.Others states where polls will be held on Monday are Assam, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and Sikkim. In Jammu and Kashmir, elections are scheduled only in Jammu in this round.The intensive campaign by Sonia Gandhi for the Congress has turned these elections from a cakewalk for the BJP into a race which promises to have anail-biting finish. Although opinion polls have predicted that the BJP-led combine will bag the highest number of seats, the alliance is slated to fall short of a majority. In this scenario, the real battle for government formation will begin only after the results are in, making every seat crucial for the three political formations which are in the fray.For the BJP, which does not have much of a presence in the South, the outcome in UP and Bihar could make the vital difference between ruling and remaining in opposition.In UP, it is hoping to gain from the four-way contest which is expected to split the anti-BJP votes.
