WB Civic Polls: BJP Workers Clash With Police During Protest Over 'Rigging'

The SEC is scheduled to meet West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar to update on the civic polls.

The West Bengal BJP unit also wrote to the State Election Commissioner demanding "Elections to 108 municipalities to be declared null and void."

(Photo: PTI)

Video Producer: Debayan Dutta
Video Editor: Abhishek Sharma

BJP workers in West Bengal clashed with police personnel on Monday, 28 February, during protests against alleged electoral malpractices in the state civic polls held on Sunday, 27 February.

The BJP also called for a 12-hour bandh, from 6 am to 6 pm, in West Bengal on Monday to protest against the alleged rigging and attacks on opposition party members "by ruling TMC goons" during the elections.

Polling for 108 civic bodies in West Bengal, held on Sunday, saw multiple reports of violence among opposition candidates, booth rigging, false voting with BJP claiming that the police did not allow BJP workers to vote.

Sukanta Majumdar, West Bengal BJP president, said:

"Our workers were protesting peacefully, they are beaten up. Police is playing the role of a cadre for TMC (Trinamool Congress), this is against democracy."

BJP workers were also seen protesting on railway tracks at Hooghly railway station.

'All Schools, Colleges Will Be Open’: Govt

Due to the protests, private buses in Sainthia in Birbhum district were halted with lesser number of state government buses plying, as reported by ANI. Movement of trains continued as normal.

The state government had said on Sunday that they would not allow any bandh or strike. "All schools, colleges will be open. State Govt will take all necessary measures to ensure that all establishments and services function smoothly and that there is no disruption," the West Bengal government said, according to ANI.

The West Bengal BJP unit also wrote to the State Election Commissioner demanding "elections to 108 municipalities are declared null and void."

A statement by Raj Bhavan, Kolkata, said that the meeting of State Election Commissioner Saurab Das with West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar was rescheduled to 3.30 pm on Monday.

The SEC is expected to update on the civic polls and explain the "failure of constitutional duty to hold polls to Howrah Municipality."

The statement said,

"The meeting is in the backdrop of alarmingly disturbing inputs, depicting scenario of violence and lawlessness, with administration in partisan mode, and systematic failure of the State Election Commission in the election process to Municipalities – Constitutional Bodies under Part IX A of the Constitution."

The Background Of the Violence

ANI reported that a clash broke out between TMC and BJP workers in North 24 Parganas during the elections to 108 civic bodies in West Bengal on Sunday.

Arjun Singh, vice-president of the BJP in West Bengal, said that two electronic voting machines (EVMs) were vandalised and that the situation is similar at other booths. He added that the police are arresting BJP workers and not letting them vote.

(With inputs from ANI)