In the midst of polling in Balurghat, tensions escalated as the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Bengal chief found himself in a confrontation with Trinamool Congress (TMC) workers who were chanting 'Go back' slogans. The incident underscored the charged atmosphere surrounding the electoral process in West Bengal, where political rivalries often spill over into confrontations on the ground.As voters queued up to cast their ballots in Balurghat, a constituency witnessing intense political competition, the BJP's Bengal chief arrived at the polling station, accompanied by party supporters and security personnel.
However, their presence was met with resistance from TMC workers who had gathered outside, chanting slogans and waving party flags. Till around 9am, the voter turnout in the three constituencies was 15.6%.While Balurghat recorded 14.7% turnout and Darjeeling recorded 15.5% turnout, Raiganj witnessed 16.4% turnout. The poll panel received around 60 complaints in the first two hours mostly related to EVM malfunctioning. For the BJP, Balurghat is a key constituency as the party’s president and sitting MP Majumdar is contesting from here. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah have campaigned in this constituency. The TMC has fielded state minister Biplab Mitra against him. “He knows he will lose this time. The BJP hasn’t been able to post agents in all booths. Hence, he is staging such drama,” said Biplab Mitra, state minister and TMC candidate. In all, 47 candidates are contesting for these three seats located in north Bengal. Around 5.1 million electors will be exercising their franchises from these three seats.