Fresh voting is being held in West Bengal’s Falta assembly constituency on May 21 after the Election Commission cancelled the earlier polling held on April 29 over alleged irregularities.
The Election Commission
ordered a repoll after receiving reports of voter intimidation, missing CCTV footage and violations at several polling booths.
Security has been tightened across the constituency for the fresh voting exercise. According to PTI, eight Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel have been deployed at every polling booth, double the number present during the previous polling.
“The poll panel does not want to leave any room for irregularities this time. Security arrangements have therefore been significantly strengthened,” a senior election official told PTI.
Falta has 285 polling booths and around 35 companies of central forces have been deployed to maintain order. Thirty quick response teams have also been kept ready to handle any disturbance.
The Election Commission has increased surveillance as well. Two web cameras have been installed inside every polling booth and one outside. Live webcasting of polling stations and nearby areas is also being carried out.
“Monitoring will be conducted from the offices of the District Election Officer (DEO) and the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO),” the official said. Drone surveillance is also being considered for the repoll.
Three election observers have been appointed to supervise the voting process.
TMC Candidate Withdraws Before Repoll
A day before the repoll, Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate Jahangir Khan withdrew from the contest.
“I dreamt that Falta should become golden Falta. The chief minister has said that a special package would be announced for Falta. That is why I am stepping aside from contesting the repoll,” Khan said.
“I am the son of the soil. I am stepping aside to ensure peace and prosperity for Falta and for its people,” he added.
CM Suvendu Adhikari Announces Special Package
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari held a roadshow in Falta on Tuesday and announced that a special package for the constituency would be included in the next state budget.
He also promised jobs to one member from the family of every BJP worker allegedly killed in post-poll violence after the 2021 assembly elections.
Taking a swipe at Jahangir Khan, Adhikari said, “Where is self-styled Pushpa? He had no other way, as he won’t get a polling agent, so he decided to run away.”
The chief minister also claimed that voters in the constituency were finally getting a chance to vote freely.
“What I am witnessing today is people’s happiness. It feels like a second Independence Day. Voters will get back their voting rights after 10 years and will finally be able to cast their votes freely and fairly,” he said.
BJP Predicts Big Win In Falta
BJP candidate Debangshu Panda said he was confident of a big victory in the repoll.
“In Falta, the BJP will win by a margin of 1-1.5 lakhs votes,” Panda said.
He alleged that large-scale irregularities had taken place during the earlier polling. According to him, the BJP had demanded fresh voting after complaining about alleged manipulation and voter intimidation at several booths.
“We had petitioned for re-polling in the 150 booths where cellotape was put on the BJP symbol… They even rotated cameras in some of the booths… Yesterday, they made a decision on our demand and declared a repoll on 21st May,” Panda said.
Why The Election Commission Ordered A Repoll
The Election Commission ordered fresh voting after special observer Sujeet Mishra submitted a report highlighting serious violations during polling in Falta.
According to an earlier HT report, CCTV footage from several polling stations was either missing or incomplete.
At polling station 229, no footage was available from the beginning of polling till 3:14 pm. At polling station 177, footage was missing during multiple time periods.
The report stated, “Serious allegations of intimidation and voter obstruction remained unverified due to missing footage.”
The observer also pointed to several incidents seen in available CCTV footage. At polling station 224, the report noted, “An extremely large number of instances where companions cast votes on behalf of voters throughout the day; multiple persons inside voting compartment; same individuals appeared to vote multiple times; polling agent repeatedly approached compartment and cast votes on behalf of voters.”
Similar allegations were reported from polling stations 160, 182 and 232.
The observer concluded that polling at 60 out of Falta’s 285 booths had been affected by irregularities.
