FIR on Rupa Ganguly for assault on voter

An FIR has been lodged against BJP candidate Rupa Ganguly on Monday after she allegedly assaulted a female voter at a polling booth in Howrah North constituency in the morning during the fourth phase of the Assembly elections.

Unlike the case of Ms Chatterjee, who was caught threatening a presiding officer inside a polling booth, Ms Ganguly was however caught on the wrong foot outside a booth at Shrikrishna Sevashram Shiksha Niketan in Salkia after she reached there along with some BJP workers at around 9.15 am, claiming of rampant rigging. A group of Trinamul Congress workers confronted her leading to an altercation which turned into a scuffle soon.

Ms Ganguly was seen shoving during the scuffle with the group including a woman, Soma Das, who questionned her visit. Ms Das later said, “I do not belong to any political party. I was standing in the queue with my mother to cast vote at the booth. Ms Ganguly slapped and threatened me.” She lodged a complaint with the Malipanchghara police station of the Howrah police commissionerate against the BJP candidate.

Additional director general of police (law and order) Anuj Sharma said, “Ms Das and her were going to cast their votes. Ms Ganguly prevented them. Ms Das lodged a complaint of physical assault by Ms Ganguly on her. An FIR has been registered and a case has been initiated.” Ms Ganguly’s Trinamul Congress rival, Lakshmi Ratan Shukla said, “Rupadi tried to create disturbance. The people should be allowed to cast their votes freely.”

Earlier Ms Ganguly got locked in a verbal duel with a group of Trinamul workers at another polling booth at Bamangachhi Sree Aurobindo High School with the allegations of rigging.

She also had a quarrel with Howrah Municipal Corporation’s deputy mayor Minati Adhikary at a booth in a school in Bamangachhi where she accused Ms Adhikary of working as the polling agent of an independent candidate.