Nagaon bypoll: Why EC’s claim of peaceful polling, high turnout doesn’t add up
EC pegs voter turnout at 76 pc; journalists say many booths hardly had queues, while Congress polling agents allege rigging, intimidation and booth capturing, demanding re-polling at 16 stations
The by-election to the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam has thrown up a curious contrast: while the Election Commission (EC) has put the voter turnout at an impressive 76.19 per cent, those present on the ground have presented an entirely different picture.
While journalists on the ground say booths appeared to have shorter queues than in earlier polls and lacked the buzz and enthusiasm characteristic of polling day, polling agents of the Congress have alleged booth capturing at several places, intimidation and rigging, and demanded re-polling at 16 polling stations.
Congress leaders have also questioned the higher voter turnout recorded in Assembly segments with a considerable Muslim population, alleging that a chunk of the population lives outside the state and didn’t turn up to vote.
‘Shorter queues, few Hindu voters’
The EC says polling on October 6 remained largely peaceful, with the constituency recording more than 70 per cent voter turnout by 3 pm. Journalists and political workers in parts of Nagaon and Morigaon, however, have said that the voter response appeared subdued compared with previous elections.
“Unlike other elections, there were hardly any queues of voters,” journalist Pranjanl Sarma from Morigaon said, adding that the turnout among Hindu voters appeared particularly low.
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Nagaon-based journalist Hareswar Bora echoed a similar opinion and said he visited several polling centres in Samaguri but found little enthusiasm among voters.
Congress questions EC numbers
The official figures, however, tell a different story. Samaguri recorded the highest turnout at 80.22 per cent, followed by Laharighat at 78.88 per cent, Dhing at 77.93 per cent and Rupahihat at 77.67 per cent. Jagiroad recorded 76.67 per cent, Morigaon 72.85 per cent, Nagaon-Batadraba 72.01 per cent and Raha 70.29 per cent.
The four Assembly segments with the highest turnout — Samaguri, Laharighat, Dhing and Rupahihat — have sizeable minority populations. Nagaon-Batadraba and Raha, which have larger indigenous and Hindu populations following the 2023 delimitation, recorded comparatively lower turnout.
Polling officers at work at one of the booths in Nagaon.
Former minister and Congress Lok Sabha MP Rakibul Hussain questioned the official figures, particularly in Samaguri.
“About 20 per cent of the people of Samaguri work outside the state, in places such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Many did not return to vote. Yet the official turnout is shown at around 82 per cent,” Hussain told The Federal.
He alleged that similar discrepancies were visible in other segments and claimed there had been large-scale rigging.
The allegations, however, remain contested and would require verification through polling records, CCTV or webcasting footage and other statutory documents.
Pattern similar to Assembly polls
The turnout pattern is not entirely new. In the 2026 Assam Assembly election, minority-dominated seats in Nagaon district also recorded higher participation. Rupahihat registered 92.74 per cent turnout, followed by Samaguri at 91.31 per cent and Dhing at 90.34 per cent.
Statewide figures from that election also showed a marked turnout gap between minority-dominated and indigenous-majority constituencies. Minority voters in several constituencies had travelled back from workplaces outside Assam to cast their votes, while All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) chief adviser Samujjal Bhattacharjya had urged greater participation among indigenous voters.
Also read: Nagaon bypoll: A make-or-break test for a struggling Assam Congress
Nagaon is a demographically mixed parliamentary constituency. Laharighat, Dhing and Rupahihat have substantial Muslim populations, while the post-delimitation Nagaon-Batadraba segment has a larger Hindu population.
Cong alleges rigging, intimidation at booths
The sharpest challenge to the polling process has come from the Congress.
Nagaon District Congress Committee president Runimoni Borah has alleged large-scale rigging and intimidation at several polling stations and sought re-polling at 16 booths.
In a representation to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, Borah alleged that despite prior complaints about the conduct of BJP MLA Jitu Goswami and apprehensions about intimidation and malpractice at polling booths, adequate preventive action was not taken.
She alleged that Goswami entered the Hatipukhuri polling centre despite not being a voter in the constituency and that one of his associates, accompanied by a large group of people, intimidated Congress polling agents.
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Borah further alleged that Congress polling agent Sariful Islam was taken away from the polling area around 4 pm and that his whereabouts were not immediately known.
Demand for re-polling at 16 booths
The Congress also alleged impersonation, booth capturing and other forms of malpractice at several polling stations. According to Borah, party workers repeatedly brought the complaints to the notice of presiding officers and other election officials, but no effective action followed.
The party has urged the EC to secure and examine CCTV and webcasting footage, Form 17A, presiding officers' diaries, micro-observer reports and sector officers' reports before deciding whether fresh polling is warranted.
Borah submitted a list of 16 polling stations where the Congress claimed irregularities had taken place.
These include Booths 211 to 215 under Kanchanpur GP and booths 220, 221, 222, 223, 229, 121, 122, 124, 125, 126 and 127 under Saidoria GP.
‘Presiding officers didn’t act’, allege polling agents
Several Congress polling agents have also submitted individual complaints. Khalilur Rahman, a polling agent at Booth No. 149, alleged that his complaint about rigging was not accepted by the presiding and sector officers.
Another agent, Saiful Islam, alleged that people arriving in around 18 vehicles entered the booth and indulged in malpractice, while the officials allegedly refused to receive his complaint.
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Similar complaints were submitted by Wahidur Rahman of Booth No. 150, Anarul Islam of Booth No. 151, Sariful Islam of Booth No. 122 and Ziaul Haque of Booth No. 127, among others.
Ball in EC’s court
The BJP-led NDA is expected to have the advantage in the by-election, given the political circumstances surrounding the contest. But the larger issue now is whether the official turnout figures accurately reflect voting on the ground and whether the complaints raised by the Congress stand up to scrutiny.
For the EC, the credibility of the bypoll will ultimately depend not merely on the final result but on how transparently it addresses allegations of intimidation, impersonation and booth-level malpractice.
A victory may settle the political contest. The handling of the complaints will determine whether questions over the electoral process are settled as well.
