KOLKATA : About 24 per cent votes were cast in the first two hours of polling for the second phase of Assembly elections in West Bengal today amid reports of stray violence, intimidation and false voting as the Bharatiya Janata Party demanded countermanding of polling in all the 11 constituencies of Birbhum district.
Election Commission sources said till O900 hrs, 23.64 per cent of the 1.22 crore electorate of 56 constituencies spread over seven districts exercised their franchise.
BJP’s national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh, who is in-charge of West Bengal, said the party would demand cancellation of polling in all the 11 constituencies of Birbhum. “We will demand to the Election Commission to countermand polling in all the 11 constituencies of the district. What has been going on is a farce, not polling,” he said.
Despite heavy security deployed in the region, clashes broke out between different party workers in which at least 10 people were injured. Six BJP agents and two CPI(M) agents were attacked allegedly by Trinamool activists at Ilambazar in Birbhum district while manyvoters were reportedly threatened against casting their votes at Nanur under the same district.
In Raiganj under Uttar Dinajpur district, Congress supporters were allegedly attacked by Trinamool Congress activists, while a CPI(M) agent was allegedly abducted from a booth in Kankartala of Dubrajpur constituency under Birbhum district.
The Left parties, Congress and BJP alleged that party agents were not allowed to enter in a large number of booths in Birbhum. They alleged that voters were intimidated by the Trinamool Congress against going to polling booths.
False votes were allegedly cast in booth number 163 of Englishbazar constituency in Malda district. In the first two hours after the polling began the Election Commission received about 200 complaints of various kinds. Polling for the second phase is being held across seven districts. Five of the constituencies are in Alipurduar, seven in Jalpaiguri, six in Darjeeling, nine in North Dinajpur, six in South Dinajpur, 12 in Malda and 11 in Birbhum.
The constituencies are : Kumargram (ST), Kalchini (ST), Alipurduars, Falakata (SC), Madarihat (ST), Dhupguri (SC), Maynaguri (SC),Jalpaiguri(SC), Rajganj (SC), Dabgram-Fulbari, Mal(ST),Nagrakata (ST), Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Kurseong, Matigara-Naxalbari SC), Siliguri,Phandidewa (ST), Chopra, Islampur, Goalpokhar, Chakulia, Khrandighi, Hemtabad(SC), Kaliaganj(SC), Raiganj, Itahar, Kushmandi (SC),Kumargabj, Balurghat, Tapan (ST), Gangarampur (SC), Harirampur, Habibpur(ST), Gazole (SC), Chanchal, Harishchandrapur. Malatipur,Ratua, Manikchak, Maldaha(SC), English Bazar, Mothabari, Sujapur, Baisnabnagar, Dubrajpur(SC), Suri, Bolpur, Nanoor (SC), Labpur,Sainthia (SC), Mayureswar, Rampurhat, Hansan, Nalhati, Murarai.
There are 12174947 voters, including 5891717 females voters, who will decide the fate of 383 candidates. Of the total 383 candidates the prominent ones are former Indian football superstar and Trinamool nominee Baichung Bhutia, who is pitted against former state minister and CPI-M heavyweight Asok Bhattacharya in Siliguri.
Other major candidates include North Development Minister Gautam Deb (Dabgram-Pulbari), Food Processing Minister Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury (English Bazar), Former GJM MLA Harka Bahadur Chettri (Kalimpong) and BJP’s actress candidate Locket Chatterjee (Mayureswar). Micro observers are present in 675 booths and web casting is being conducted in 157 booths. For constant observation, 1516 CCTV cameras, including 367 in Birbhum and 289 in Malda,have been set in several booths . According to ECI sources, close to 750 companies of CRPF (110 companies in Birbhum dist. only) are providing security during polls. As many as 110 Response Teams, 131 Quick Response Teams (QRT), 196 Radio Flying Squads, 94 Heavy Radio Flying Squads and 797 Mobile Surveillance Vehicles are kept ready in this phase. All are comprising CRPF personnel. (AGENCIES)
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