A total of 635 complaints were registered with the Election Commission of India (ECI) by 11 a.m. on Thursday regarding the polling in the first phase of West Bengal Assembly polls covering 152 Assembly constituencies in 16 districts. Of these complaints, 260 were physically submitted to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), while 375 were submitted through the C-Vigil app. The complaints mainly focused on issues like violence and election malpractices.
In the initial four hours of polling across the 152 constituencies, the average polling rate stood at 41.11 percent. Jhargram reported the highest polling percentage at 43.71 percent, while Cooch Behar had the lowest at 38.67 percent during that period. Tragically, a voter named Isratan Biwi passed away at a polling booth in the Keshpur Assembly constituency in West Midnapore district while attempting to cast her vote due to feeling unwell.
Tension arose at a polling booth in the Barwan Assembly constituency in Murshidabad district when allegations were made by the Trinamool Congress leadership that an EVM button was registering votes for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate instead of their own. Polling was briefly halted but resumed after intervention by the ECI-appointed general observer and security personnel. Despite fresh tension in the Naoda Assembly constituency, the situation was diffused with the help of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
Amidst these incidents, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, former state Congress president in West Bengal and a four-time Congress Lok Sabha member, expressed contentment with the ECI’s efforts in ensuring peaceful polls. Incidents of voter intimidation and violence, which were common in previous elections, were relatively subdued this time. Suvendu Adhikari, the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, suggested that the BJP could secure around 125 constituencies out of the 152 where polling took place in the first phase.
