West Bengal: Violence mars civic polls

Kolkata: Sporadic violence marked the municipal elections in seven civic bodies in the state on Sunday. From looting a rifle from a cop to hurling bombs to rampant electoral malpractices, hooliganism marked the polling process throughout the day.

The elections for the seven urban local bodies (ULBs) comprising of five municipalities, one notified authority and one municipal corporation got underway on Sunday morning. The municipalities which went to polls were Panskura and Haldia in East Midnapore, Nalhati in Birbhum, Buniadpur in South Dinajpur and Dhupguri in Jalpaiguri.

Durgapur Municipal Corporation in Burdwan West and Cooper’s Camp Notified Authority in Nadia were the two other ULBs which went to polls also. The results will be declared on August 17. Violence hit Durgapur where a group of Trinamul Congress workers allegedly hurled bombs outside a booth in ward no 13.

Outsiders were seen travelling in motorcycles outside many booths. BJP workers blocked Gandhi More in protest. A police team rushed to the spot and dispersed them by lathicharging them. Furious over the police lathicharge, the BJP workers went on rampage at some polling booths in ward no 34.

They even attacked a police outpost and torched four motorcycles on Kada Road. Three police personnel were injured in the attack during which the rifle of a cop was snatched by them. The injured were admitted to a hospital. Two of them suffered head injuries. To bring the situation under control the police opened fire in the air. The rapid action force was also deployed. The looted rifle was later recovered from a nearby bush. One person was detained by the questioning in connection with the incident. The Congress withdrew its candidates from seven wards there alleging Trinamul-sponsored terror.

Trinamul Congress minister Aroop Biswas alleged that the BJP brought outsiders from Bihar and Jharkhand to unleash violence and hamper the polling. “But the common people foiled the BJP’s conspiracy and cast their votes peacefully,” he said. In Nalhati of Birbhum, EVMs were looted from ward no 11 and 12 by a gang of miscreants.

Panicked, some voters jumped into a pond to save their lives. Many female voters were seen running in fear. In Haldia, the ruling party has been accused of kidnapping the Left Front candidate and keeping him under confinement for three hours at an undisclosed location.

In Panskura, a Left candidate damaged an EVM at booth no 34 in ward no 1 after accusing the Trinamul workers of rigging. At the Cooper’s Camp an independent candidate was found slapping a Trinamul worker in booth no 187 while at Buniadpur a BJP candidate was reportedly attacked by a group of Trinamul workers. The only exception was Dhupguri where heavy rain kept violence at bay.

Polling for the seven urban local bodies comprising of five municipalities, one notified authority and one municipal corporation was held during the day and the results will be declared on August 17.