All eyes are now on May 4 (Monday), when the election results will be announced for the high-stakes battle, largely between the TMC and the BJP, in West Bengal, along with the states of Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry.
The Bengal elections witnessed ongoing political disputes, with both sides making allegations against each other. The Election Commission of India had to conduct re-polls at 15 polling stations in two assembly constituencies in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district on Saturday.
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Fresh re-polls were also ordered to be held at all 285 polling stations in Bengal’s Valta constituency on May 21.
Below is a breakdown of the latest developments in the Bengal elections:
Re-polling at Pachem Galaxies, Diamond Harbour
The re-poll was held in Paschim and Diamond Harbour, both represented by the Trinamool Congress, from 7 am to 6 pm. By 5 p.m., voter turnout reached 86.9 percent.
“The repolls were conducted in a very peaceful manner. Till 5 pm, the voter turnout in Magrat Paschim was 86.1% and in Diamond Harbour, 87.6%,” an EC official in Kolkata told HT earlier.
The Independent Electoral Commission ordered re-polling on Friday at 15 polling stations after receiving complaints of tampering with electronic voting machines during the second phase of the West Bengal elections.
At least 77 complaints related to alleged manipulation of the EVM system were received during the second phase of the elections. “While 32 came from Falta, 13 were received from Majarrat, 29 were received from Diamond Harbour, and three were received from Badge,” the official added.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called for a rerun of the polls and accused the ruling TMC of responsibility for the alleged rigging. All four assembly seats from which the complaints came are TMC strongholds.
He ordered re-poll in Valta seat in Bengal
On Saturday, the EC directed re-poll at all 285 polling stations in Bengal’s Valtha constituency on May 21, citing “subversion of the democratic process,” an official familiar with the matter told HT earlier.
The polling authority said that voting in all booths, including subsidiary polling stations, will take place from seven in the morning until six in the evening on May 21, under “tight security arrangements to ensure a free, fair and transparent exercise.” The counting of votes in the electoral district is scheduled to take place on May 24.
“The Special Observer and District Electoral Officer observed that there were sufficient grounds to conclude that the polling process at several polling stations in Valta was botched due to the alleged use of black tape and perfume on the polling units. In multiple booths, disrupted video footage was found. There were huge gaps in the video footage. Unauthorized persons could be seen entering the voting booths and the polling units of the electronic voting machines were found to have been tampered with,” an EC official told HT.
Vote counting tomorrow (May 4)
As the controversy over the Bengal elections continues, all eyes will turn to the counting of votes in the crucial battle in the eastern state, along with Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry, on Monday (May 4).
Opinion polls predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party was heading for a historic victory in Bengal, while Prime Minister Mamata Banerjee rejected these expectations and said that the TMC would win at least 226 seats out of 294.
Vote counting is likely to begin around 8 a.m. on Monday. The process will begin with postal ballots, followed by electronic voting machines.
