The Election Commission on Sunday ordered a repolling in two booths in West Bengal, one in Deganga under Barasat Lok Sabha constituency and the other in Kakdwip under Mathura constituency.
The repolling started at 7 a.m. and would continue till 6 p.m., said officials.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sought repoll at the booths, alleging that malpractices were carried out during the voting process on Saturday. In a letter to the chief electoral officer on Saturday, BJP Leader Shishir Bajoria requested re-polling and claimed that booth agents from the saffron party were driven out, CCTV cameras were found facing in directions other than polling cubicles, and voters were prevented from casting votes.
The booth in the Barasat constituency is located at the Kadambagachi Saradar Para FP School in the Deganga assembly segment, while the one in Mathurapur is located at the Aaddir Mahal Srichaitanya Bidyapith in the Kakdwip assembly seat, they added.
Caption: The election commission ordered repolling in west Bengal.
The decision to re-poll was taken on Sunday based on reports of the returning officers, the district election officers, and observers concerned, officials said.
“I am directed to state that on the basis of reports received from the concerned RO/the concerned DEO/the Observers of 17-Barasat PC and 20-Mathurapur (SC) PC. regarding poll taken for General Election to Lok Sabha for West Bengal State, 2024, held on 1 June, 2024 and after taking all material circumstances into account, the Commission, hereby declares under sub-section (2) of Section 58 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, that the poll taken on 1 June, 2024 for aforesaid election at the following polling stations (as mentioned in Column 3 of the table below) to be void and appoints 3 June, 2024 as the date and fixes the hours as mentioned in Column (4) of the table below, for taking a fresh poll at the said polling stations in accordance with Commission’s instructions contained in paragraphs 13.62 of Chapter XIII of Hand Book for Returning Officer, 2023,” the Election Commission said in a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal.
What happened on Saturday?
An alleged clash broke out between Trinamool Congress and BJP workers at Bayarbari in West Bengal’s Basirhat amid the seventh and final phase of polling in the Lok Sabha elections on Saturday.
A clash also broke out between TMC and BJP workers at Meraganj in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district, leaving several people injured.
Meanwhile, as West Bengal police went to arrest an alleged accused in Saturday’s violence in Basirhat’s Sandeshkhali, the local women resisted, and a scuffle broke out on Sunday. The police had come to arrest BJP worker Sadhan Nandi.
