Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee held a high-stakes virtual meeting on Saturday to brief party counting agents ahead of the state assembly election results. The two leaders expressed firm confidence in the party’s performance, predicting that the TMC will secure more than 200 of the 294 assembly seats. This briefing follows a two-phase election held on April 23 and April 29, with the official counting of votes scheduled to begin on May 4.
During the nearly two-hour session, the Chief Minister urged agents to remain vigilant and ignore exit poll data or social media campaigns from the opposition. Mamata Banerjee dismissed recent exit polls as unreliable tools used primarily to influence financial markets, citing discrepancies in previous election cycles. She specifically instructed agents to stay at their designated counting centres until the final results are certified and to demand immediate recounts if TMC candidates appear to lose by narrow margins of 200 to 300 votes.
Abhishek Banerjee echoed these instructions, placing a heavy emphasis on monitoring postal ballots and reporting any irregularities. He reminded agents of past incidents, such as the power outage during the 2021 Nandigram counting, and insisted that any unusual activity must be communicated to the party leadership instantly. The meeting also included technical training on the protocols for unsealing electronic voting machines and managing various rounds of the counting process.
The session comes amid heightened tensions regarding the security of strong rooms. Earlier this week, TMC leaders, including the Chief Minister herself, raised concerns about potential malpractice at counting centres in Kolkata. While the Chief Electoral Officer, Manoj Agarwal, has maintained that all protocols are being strictly followed to ensure a transparent process, the TMC leadership has made it clear that they intend to provide full support to any agents who face intimidation or interference during the final stage of the democratic exercise.
