Kolkata: The Election Commission of India has formally scheduled re-polling for fifteen specific booths across West Bengal this Saturday following reports of significant disruptions during the voting phase on April 29. This corrective measure targets four polling stations in Diamond Harbour and eleven in Magrahat Paschim, where the electoral process was reportedly marred by violence, clashes between rival political supporters, and allegations of interference with Electronic Voting Machines. By ordering a fresh round of voting, the Commission aims to ensure a fair and transparent outcome in these highly contested segments, which were previously identified as hotspots for electoral malpractice.
In conjunction with the re-polling announcement, administrative authorities have drastically increased security protocols around seven primary strong rooms in Kolkata. A restrictive order is now in effect, prohibiting the gathering of five or more individuals within a 200-metre radius of these storage facilities to prevent further political unrest. The deployment includes approximately 700 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces, tasked with maintaining a vigilant perimeter and ensuring the safety of the stored voting equipment. These heightened measures follow a chaotic five-hour demonstration outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra on Thursday night, where supporters from opposing parties engaged in a tense standoff over the integrity of the storage sites.
The surge in security is a direct response to claims made by the Trinamool Congress, which alleged that election officials had accessed strong rooms without proper authorization or the presence of party agents. The party expressed deep concerns regarding potential tampering and reported seeing suspicious individuals near the machines. However, the Election Commission has firmly denied these accusations, clarifying that the observed activity was the standard sorting of postal ballots, conducted under a robust three-layer security framework. Officials have reiterated that all machines are completely secure and that the stringent protocols currently in place make any unauthorized manipulation of the results virtually impossible.
