Bengal bypolls: Polling starts for six Assembly constituencies; peaceful so far

Polling for the bypolls for six Assembly constituencies in West Bengal began from 7 A.M. on Wednesday with the polling process having been overall peaceful in the first hour barring some stray complaints of poll-related disturbances. 

Minor tension broke out at booth number 63 of Naihati Assembly constituency in North 24 Parganas district after the agent for the BJP candidate from there Rupak Mitra was denied entry to the booth.

Mitra himself arrived at the booth and made arrangements for his agent to occupy the seat designated for him there.

BJP complained about conducting the mandatory mock-polling process at a booth under Sitai Assembly constituency in Cooch Behar district in absence of their polling agent.

The polling is continuing under blanket security cover with 108 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel being deputed.

Out of the 108 companies, 102 companies have been assigned for booth deployment and Quick Response Team (QRT) formation, while the remaining six companies have been deployed for protection of strong-rooms, where the EVMs will be preserved at the end of the polling process officially scheduled at 6 P.M.

The counting will be on November 23. The six Assembly constituencies that will be going for bypolls include Sitai in Cooch Behar district, Madarihat in Alipurduar, Taldangra in Bankura, Medinipur in West Midnapore district and Haroa and Naihati in North 24 Parganas district.

All the six constituencies are going for bypolls since the erstwhile legislators from there got elected as Lok Sabha members in the general elections this year.

In the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections barring Madarihat, where a BJP candidate got elected, Trinamool Congress candidates had won from the other five constituencies.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has ensured 100 per cent webcasting for the total of 1,583 polling booths, of which the maximum number of booths are in Medinipur at 304, followed by Sitai at 300, Haroa at 279, Taldangra at 264, Madarihat at 226 and Naiharti at 210.

There are four-cornered contests for the bypolls for all the six constituencies this time involving Trinamool Congress, BJP, Congress and Left Front and its allies this time since there had not been any seat-sharing agreement between the Congress and the CPI(M)-led Left Front.

While Left Front candidates are contesting from Sitai, Madarihat, Taldangra and Medinipur constituencies, the front leadership has sacrificed Naihati for CPI(M-L) and Haroa for All India Secular Front (AISF).