Kolkata civic election: Amid violence, Opposition alleges rigging, seeks repoll

A total of 40,48,357 voters were eligible to vote and elect 144 councillors out of 950 candidates in the fray. The counting of votes will take place on December 21.

No sooner did voting commence, complaints about booth agents of opposition parties being driven out of polling stations started pouring in. As the day progressed, parties blocked roads and sat in a dharna near police stations. Trinamool workers clashed with candidates of Congress, the CPM and the BJP in different wards. All three Opposition parties staged protests across the city, and later in the evening demanded fresh elections.

Three people were injured after two crude bombs were hurled outside Taki Boys’ School in Sealdah area. Both Trinamool and Congress held each other responsible for the incident. Police blamed unidentified miscreants for another crude bomb hurled in the Beleghata area. A third incident of bomb being hurled outside a booth was reported from Khanna area in north Kolkata.

CPM workers with some of their candidates put up a road blockade in Bagha Jatin area in South Kolkata and withdrew their agents in four wards. “We have withdrawn our agents in four wards, namely 101, 102, 109 and 110 (Jadavpur area). Trinamool cadres have beaten them up and driven them out. Therefore, we blocked the road in Bagha Jatin area,” Samik Lahiry, CPM District Secretary of South 24 Parganas, told The Indian Express. The Congress too alleged widespread booth rigging by TMC and joined a sit-in outside Burtolla Police Station along with CPM and BJP a little after noon.

Assuring action against party workers if proven guilty, Trinamool Congress National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee said, “Any person, irrespective of political affiliation, who disturbs the voting process will be put behind bars. If it is proven that any AITC worker is involved in incidents of violence, stern action will be taken against them within 24 hours.”

Before casting her vote at Mitra Institution, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she was happy people voted “peacefully” in the election. “In corporation elections, the turnout is good. People are exercising their franchise like in a festival. Election is a festival of democracy. Kolkata Police is carrying out its duties efficiently,” she said.

But opposition parties complained elections were far from being free, fair and peaceful.

BJP leaders protested across the state post 1 pm after their candidates were beaten up in several booths. Their candidates Meena Devi Purohit (Ward 22) and Bijay Ojha (Ward 23) said they were allegedly attacked by Trinamool workers; Brajesh Jha (Ward 7) complained policemen allegedly prevented him from entering the booth; Rajarshi Lahiri, also a BJP candidate, complained he was also allegedly beaten up by Trinamool workers after he identified a fake voter. He was taken to SSKM Hospital in an unconscious stage and later referred to a private hospital.

At many places, the CPM, Congress and the BJP were in dharna together. For instance, at the Burtolla Police Station, Congress candidate for Ward 7, Moumita Kali, was joined in a sit-in protest by CPM candidate Motilal Ghosh and Bonid Kumar Barui, the agent for the BJP candidate. “Since last night, our agents and workers have been threatened. This morning they were driven out of polling stations by TMC. Then TMC guys started rigging inside the booths. They are just pressing the button on EVM there. I made several calls to the police who said everything is fine in the booths. They are working as TMC cadres. That is why I and members of other parties are sitting here,” Kali told The Indian Express.

Later in the evening, the BJP sought fresh elections to KMC and demanded that Sunday’s polls be declared null and void in view of the violence. Leader of Opposition in state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari led a delegation of party MLAs to Raj Bhawan to apprise Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar of the day’s incidents.

“We demand re-election in the entire KMC. Today democracy was destroyed by city police officers and Trinamool Congress workers. Kolkata Police has turned into TMC cadre. There were no armed police. They stopped 50 per cent of our polling agents. There were 20 per cent genuine voters and the rest were fake because of booth rigging. Today’s election should be declared null and void,” he told reporters.

The CPM too demanded re-election after its candidates and polling agents were attacked. In a statement, Left Front Chairman Biman Bose announced that the party would organise sit-in demonstrations across the state on Monday and Tuesday. The party would also submit a memorandum to the state poll panel on Monday demanding fresh election.

Senior Congress leader and the Chairman of the Election Committee Nepal Mahata said, “Since morning, we have seen how people were deprived of free and fair elections. Our candidates were beaten up and poll agents threatened. Despite the High Court’s instructions, the state administration has completely failed in ensuring free and fair elections.”