EC orders repoll at 15 booths in West Bengal after phase 2 of Assembly elections

The Election Commission on Friday ordered repolling at 15 polling stations in West Bengal, after reviewing voting held there during the second phase of the Assembly elections on April 29. The repoll is scheduled for May 2.

What EC said

In a letter issued to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer, the Commission said the decision followed reports and field inputs submitted by the state election machinery. It added that voting at the affected booths would be conducted from 7 am to 6 pm.

After examining reports from returning officers and election observers, the Commission declared the April 29 polling at those stations void.

Of the 15 booths where voting will be held again, 11 are located in the Magarhat Paschim Assembly constituency, while the remaining four fall under Diamond Harbour.

Falta complaints under review

A report concerning complaints from Falta is still awaited. The constituency had generated a significant number of complaints during polling, according to officials familiar with the matter.

This marks the first instance of repolling in the current round of Assembly elections being held across West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry. No such recommendation had been made after the first phase of polling in West Bengal on April 23.

“Fresh voting at all 15 polling stations will take place between 7:00 am and 6:00 pm,” the Commission said, reiterating that the exercise would be carried out in accordance with election guidelines.

Security concerns at counting centres

Earlier in the day, West Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal dismissed allegations of possible malpractice at the Bhabanipur counting centre, a day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee remained at the venue for several hours, raising concerns over the security of EVMs.

Agarwal said the strong rooms were under continuous CCTV surveillance and protected by multiple layers of security.

Security was tightened outside key counting centres in Kolkata, with additional CAPF personnel and armed police deployed. “Additional CAPFs and armed police forces have also been deployed,” Joint Commissioner of Police Rupesh Kumar said.

Banerjee had earlier warned against any attempt to interfere with the counting process, while the Election Commission rejected claims of tampering, saying officials were following due procedure inside the secured premises.

(With agency inputs)