Quiet yet enthusiastic

Voters showed “tremendous enthusiasm” right from the morning,chief electoral officer Sunil Gupta said. “The turnout is expected to go beyond 80 per cent as many people were still standing in the queue.” The 78.3 per cent till 6.30 pm was already beyond last time’s 77.94 per cent.

Till a month before a poll expected to usher in change,there had been fears about bloodshed but the first three phases have belied those fears. Javed Shamim,DC,said Wednesday’s was an “overall peaceful”. He said 51 people had been arrested as a preventive and for cognisable offences.

Under an overcast sky and amid occasional drizzles,the mood was one of a quiet resolve to vote. Preeti Chatterjee,80,of Tollygunge,for example,voted for the first time in 12 years. Missing for once was aggressive party workers who usually sit in clusters near polling booths,as well as the hectic movement of police and paramilitary forces. Over 600 troops had been deployed but they looked relaxed in and outside booths. The city looked like it was going though a bandh with shops closed; the streets had more traffic police and security officials that common people,most of whom were in their local booths.

A couple of incidents,however,went against the trend. At Bijpur in North 24-Parganas,the CPM alleged that their polling agent was attacked by the Trinamool Congress. The Trinamool candidate here is Subhrangshu Roy,son of Union Minister Mukul Roy. Police lathicharged supporters of the two parties outside a booth in Bijpur.

Kolkata’s Kasba constituency too saw a clash between supporters of the CPM and the Trinamool. Four of the latter were allegedly injured and a vehicle of the Trinamool polling agent was damaged. Even Governor M K Narayanan,who cast his vote in Dalhousie,noted the significance of the election,calling it a “historic” one.