Kolkata (West Bengal): The counting of votes for the violence-hit West Bengal Panchayat polls started at 8 AM today (Tuesday). Widespread violence was reported across the state leading to the death of 20 people during the elections, for which voting took place on Saturday, July 8.
There are around 339 counting venues spread across 22 districts. The maximum number of counting centres was in South 24 Parganas at 28, while the minimum was in Kalimpong at four.
According to an official of the State Election Commission (SEC), the counting is likely to continue for the next two days. "It will take time for the ballots to be counted and the results to be compiled. We are hopeful that a trend will be available by the end of the day," the official said. Repolling was conducted on Monday, July 9 at 696 panchayat booths, after the voting was declared void in light of alleged rigging, booth capturing, and multiple reports of electoral malfeasance and voter intimidation.
Also read: WB panchayat poll violence: Governor meets HM Amit Shah, says good will come
The polls were billed as a test of the popularity of the Mamata Banerjee government in light of multiple arrests in connection with the alleged teachers' recruitment scam. The outcome of the polls would also give an indication of where the BJP, the principal opposition party in the state, stands in the state ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose said, "We will certainly take stern action against the control room lords those who sit in political control rooms and guide or remote control the goons on the field. It will be an all-out action. There will be certainly very stern action because this violence is affecting the future of the new generation. We will make Bengal a safer place for the new generation to live in."
On Monday, Bose, who had been conducting visits to districts affected by pre-poll violence, met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi. After the meeting, he said there will be light at the end of the tunnel and that good things will happen in the future.
Meanwhile, a day ahead of counting for the Bengal panchayats, BJP national president JP Nadda on Monday nominated a four-member fact-finding committee to visit the violence-hit areas of the state and send a report. The delegation includes former Union minister and party MP Ravishankar Prasad, (convenor), former Mumbai Police commissioner, Satyapal Singh, Rajdeep Roy, and Rekha Verma.
The BJP, meanwhile, accused the SEC of not ordering repolling at "thousands of booths" where they should have. Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, said he will move the Calcutta High Court and present evidence collected by his party of alleged malpractice in thousands of booths during Saturday's polling.
The ruling TMC is contesting all the 928 seats in zilla parishads, 9,419 seats in panchayat samitis, and 61,591 seats in gram panchayats. The BJP has fielded candidates in 897 zilla parishad seats, 7,032 panchayat samiti seats, and 38,475 seats in gram panchayats. The CPI(M) is fighting 747 zilla parishad seats, 6,752 panchayat samiti seats, and 35,411 gram panchayat seats. The Congress is contesting 644 zilla parishad seats, 2,197 panchayat samiti seats, and 11,774 gram panchayat seats.
