New Delhi, May 2: Ahead of the counting of votes in West Bengal scheduled for Monday, the Election Commission on Saturday deployed an additional 165 counting observers and 77 police observers in the state.
While the additional counting observers will assist the 294 such observers already deployed per constituency, the additional police observers will strengthen security and oversee law and order arrangements outside the counting centres, the poll body said.
Officials said that while police observers are generally not deployed during vote counting, in this case, they will not be allowed to enter the counting centres, and will manage law and order outside only.
“The additional counting observers and police observers have been deployed to ensure that the counting proceedings are conducted in a secure, peaceful, intimidation-free and transparent environment,” the EC said.
The EC asserted that it appointed the additional observers in exercise of its constitutional powers under Article 324 of the Constitution and provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
The observers will function under the poll body’s superintendence and control, the EC noted.
The additional counting observers will assist the existing counting observers for 165 Assembly constituencies having more than one counting hall.
The police observers will oversee the security and law and order arrangements around the counting centres assigned to them and ensure that the arrangements follow the EC’s instructions.
Mamata, Abhishek ask TMC agents to stay till results are declared
Trinamool is going to win more than 200 seats in West Bengal Assembly polls, said Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee and the party’s general secretary Abhishek Banerjee in a virtual meeting with counting agents.
The meeting began at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. All the counting agents of Trinamool joined the meeting. Apart from that, all the candidates and the party’s important leaders were present at this meeting.
According to insiders in Trinamool Congress, Mamata and Abhishek told the party workers in the meeting that the Bharatiya Janata Party has been put ahead in the exit polls to boost the stock market.
They also said that the same approach was taken in the 2021 Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
According to Trinamool insiders, Abhishek also took a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party over the exit polls. He said that the Bharatiya Janata Party is also not expecting to form the government in West Bengal.
He also said that Mamata Banerjee has highlighted how the Bharatiya Janata Party has committed financial fraud by showing fake surveys.
Predicting the party’s possible results, Abhishek Banerjee claimed it will secure more seats in this election than in 2021, when it won 215 seats.
The Trinamool insider claimed that, at the beginning of the meeting, Mamata congratulated the party workers for the ‘uncompromising fight’.
She also spoke again about the ‘atrocities’ of the central forces on the party workers and supporters.
She assured that the party will reward those who have endured the ‘atrocities’ of the central forces.
Nearly 87 pc turnout for repolling
Repolling in 15 booths of two assembly constituencies in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district concluded at 6 pm on Saturday, with around 87 per cent turnout recorded an hour before the close of voting, an official said.
A voter turnout of 86.90 per cent was recorded till 5 pm, with the figure from one booth still awaited, he said. Voting began at 7 am and continued till 6 pm.
Polling was more or less peaceful at 11 polling booths of Magrahat Paschim assembly constituency and four in Diamond Harbour. The Election Commission had ordered a repoll on Friday, following reports of electoral malpractices.
However, in booth number 179 at Chanda Primary School of the Diamond Harbour seat, the Trinamool Congress alleged that a specially abled voter and his mother were harassed by central forces. (Agencies)
