The unrest erupted after certain polling agents were allegedly barred from entering booths.
Kolkata:
An angry mob infiltrated polling stations in West Bengal’s Kultali in South 24 Parganas district and threw an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) into a nearby pond, disrupting the voting process.
The unrest erupted after certain polling agents were allegedly barred from entering the booths. This exclusion incited anger among the locals, who subsequently forced their way into the stations, forcibly seized the EVM equipped with Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), and discarded it into a water body.
In a separate incident on the same day, heightened tensions were reported from the Satuliya area in Bhangar, within the Jadavpur Lok Sabha constituency in Kolkata. The morning saw a spate of violence amid allegations of attacks on workers and supporters of the Indian Secular Front (ISF) and CPI(M). The clash left several ISF members injured, with the situation exacerbated by the presence of country-made bombs at the site.
“Today morning at 6.40 am Reserve EVMs & papers of Sector Officer near Benimadhavpur FP school, at 129-Kultali AC of 19-Jaynagar (SC) PC has been looted by local mob and 1 CU, 1 BU , 2VVPAT machines have been thrown inside a pond…FIR has been lodged by Sector Officer and necessary action has been initiated. Poll process in all six booths under the Sector is running uninterrupted. Fresh EVM and papers have been provided to the Sector Officer,” the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal said in a statement.
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Today morning at 6.40 am Reserve EVMs & papers of Sector Officer near Benimadhavpur FP school, at 129-Kultali AC of 19-Jaynagar (SC) PC has been looted by local mob and 1 CU, 1 BU , 2VVPAT machines have been thrown inside a pond.— CEO West Bengal (@CEOWestBengal) June 1, 2024
Polling in the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha elections to nine seats in Bengal began at 7 am today amid tight security. Voting in Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Diamond Harbour, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin and Kolkata Uttar seats will continue till 6 pm.
