Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 12: Even as three more persons were killed while the counting of votes were on, it was all the way for the ruling Trinamool Congress that swept the West Bengal panchayat elections, winning a majority in all three tiers of the rural local self-government bodies.
With some more results are still awaited, the TMC so far has won 2,552 out of 3,317 gram panchayats, 232 panchayat samitis, and 12 out of 20 zilla parishads. The BJP was a distant second, winning only 212 gram panchayats, seven panchayat samitis, and no zilla parishads so far.
Police said on Wednesday that three persons, including two activists of the Indian Secular Front (ISF), were killed and several policemen injured in South 24 Parganas district as a clash broke out outside a centre where counting of votes for rural polls was going on.
The incident occurred late Tuesday night when members of the ISF allegedly hurled bombs outside the counting centre at Bhangore, around 30 k.m. from Kolkata, and police restored to baton charge, he said. Police personnel fired a few rounds of rubber bullets and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the mob, the officer said.
“A senior IPS officer, his bodyguard and several other policemen as well as a few alleged members of the ISF were injured in the clash,” the police said. A few people have been detained from the spot for their alleged involvement in the incident, the officer said. “Around midnight, some people started a commotion outside the counting centre at Bhangore. They hurled bombs, aiming at our colleagues. In retaliation and to maintain law and order, our officers had baton charged. The police personnel had to fire a few rounds of tear gas and rubber bullets after the situation started deteriorating,” he said.
The counting of votes for the panchayat elections began on Tuesday morning. Over 74,000 seats are up for grabs, including 63,229 gram panchayat seats, 9,730 panchayat samiti seats, and 928 zilla parishad seats.
The polls, billed as a test of popularity for Trinamool president and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, saw rampant violence on Saturday. The re-polling on Monday was again marred by violence in several booths.
Around 40 people have died due to poll-related violence since Saturday and the TMC claimed more than 60 per cent of the casualty were members or supporters of the ruling party. Re-polling was held in 696 booths amid allegations of electoral fraud, booth capturing, and multiple reports of electoral irregularities and voter suppression during the polling.
“It’s TMC all the way in rural Bengal. I want to thank the people for their love, affection and support towards the TMC. This election has proved that only TMC resides in the heart of the people of the state,” Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said in a Facebook post.
Opposition BJP has accused the Trinamool of making “desperate attempts to loot votes” by preventing opposition observers from entering counting centres. “TMC goons are making desperate attempt to steal the elections by obstructing the counting agents and candidates of the BJP and other opposition political parties from entering counting centres. They are being restricted from going towards the venue, and bombs are being hurled to intimidate counting agents,” leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, said.
“Even a malicious campaign with baseless propaganda to malign the AITC State Govt in WB couldn’t sway the voters!” said Trinamool leader Abhishek Banerjee in response to the allegations of poll manipulation. “Grateful to the people for converting Opposition’s ‘No Vote To Mamata’ campaign to ‘Now Vote For Mamata’,” he added.
The rampant violence and allegations of ballot box tampering prompted West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose to submit a report to Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Bose also warned of stern action against those involved in the violence.
Crude bombs were found in several localities of Bhangore on Wednesday morning and a team of bomb squad reached there, the policeman said. Shops and marketplaces remained shut as locals have chosen to stay indoors. Bhangore has been on the boil since June 8 when the rural polls were announced by the state election commission.
Governor Bose had visited violence-hit Bhangore twice and spoken to the family members of a person who was killed in a poll-related clash there and also to the injured people. Bose had gone to the area on Tuesday, soon after returning from New Delhi, primarily to understand the situation there in the context of poll counting.