Poll violence in West Bengal: Angry mob disrupts voting process, throws EVM in a pond

In a violent turn of events, an angry mob stormed polling stations in West Bengal's Kultali, located in the South 24 Parganas district, causing chaos by hurling an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) into a nearby pond.

The incident occurred amidst allegations that certain polling agents were denied access to the booths, triggering fury among locals who forcibly entered the premises and disposed off the EVM, equipped with a Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), in the water.

Simultaneously, heightened tensions were reported from the Satuliya area in Bhangar, within the Jadavpur Lok Sabha constituency in Kolkata, on the same day.

The morning witnessed a series of violent clashes, with allegations of assaults on workers and supporters of the Indian Secular Front (ISF) and CPI(M). The clashes led to injuries among several ISF members, further exacerbated by the discovery of homemade explosives at the scene.

The Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal responded to the disruptions by releasing a statement verifying that Reserve EVMs and paperwork from a Sector Officer at Benimadhavpur FP school in the 129-Kultali Assembly Constituency of the 19- Jaynagar (SC) Parliamentary Constituency had been looted.

The Sector Officer filed a formal complaint, which prompted fast action. Notwithstanding the difficulties, the election was conducted without interruption in each of the six booths under the Sector, and the Sector Officer received new EVMs and papers promptly.

In the backdrop of these, the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections for nine seats in Bengal have commenced already, beginning at 7 am under stringent security measures.

Voters in Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Diamond Harbour, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin, and Kolkata Uttar constituencies are casting their ballots today, with polling scheduled to conclude at 6 pm.