South 24 Parganas (West Bengal) [India], April 29 : Allegations and counter-allegations surfaced from West Bengal's Bhangar following reports of violence overnight, with leaders from both Trinamool Congress (TMC) and opposition camps accusing each other of intimidation and unrest ahead of elections.
TMC candidate from Bhangar, Saokat Molla, alleged police excesses during the night.
"We never saw what we saw last night. Police were indulging in hooliganism. This is not good for us. A few police personnel were going from door to door and broke down some of them. They beat up some people, and in the hospital. This hooliganism continued all through the night. This was an attempt to scare off people. But the supporters and workers of the TMC will not be scared... The election will go in favour of the TMC," he said.
Regarding Naushad Siddiqui's (Indian Secular Front MLA) allegations of TMC attacking his workers, Molla said, "There's no truth to that. It was a minor issue where people from both sides were injured. Naushad Siddiqui is just making these claims with the help of his supporters."
Meanwhile, Indian Secular Front MLA Naushad Siddique while speaking to ANI, accused TMC-linked local leadership of threatening voters and creating fear.
"Since last night, as seen in the viral video, the GP (Gram Panchayat) head has been going to houses and threatening people not to vote. Bombs have also been thrown in some places. But let me tell you one thing: the people of Bhangar will not be intimidated. People here are ready. We will defeat TMC and send them home. We will enter the assembly again with a margin of over 50,000 votes," he stated.
Responding to a query on whether complaints had been filed with the Election Commission, Siddique added, "Absolutely. We are emailing reports of every incident they have caused since yesterday. We have all the documents. We aren't going to let this go... We respect law and order and the rules, but we will file cases in court against those who break them."
The first phase of elections on April 23 had seen a record 91.78 per cent polling. The voting on Wednesday will decide the electoral fate of 1,448 candidates, which includes 1,228 men and 220 women. The Election Commission has made all arrangements for the smooth conduct of the polling process.
Of over 3.22 crore total voters, 3.21 crore are general electors and nearly 40,000 are service voters. There are 1.64 crore male electors and 1.57 crore female electors, and 792 have been identified as the third gender.
Over 4.12 lakh voters are in the 18-19 age bracket and over 3,200 voters are 100 years and above. There are over 57,000 voters with disabilities (PWD). The Election Commission has set up 41,001 polling stations for the smooth conduct of elections. These include 39,301 main stations and 1700 auxiliary stations.
There are 8,845 all-women managed stations, 13 PWD-managed stations, and 258 "model" polling stations. There will be webcasting from all 41,001 polling stations.
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