‘Polling wasn’t disrupted’, poll observer to EC on chaos at Nandigram voting booth

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday asked two poll observers to submit a report on complaints by West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee regarding the alleged Nandigram poll violence as the state witnessed the second phase of voting across 30 assembly seats in the assembly elections.

“A separate hand written complaint was received from Hon’ble Chief Minister via CEO West Bengal today in the late afternoon. The same has been forwarded to Special General Observer Shri Ajay Nayak and Special Police Observer Shri Vivek Dube under intimation to CEO. They have been asked to send a report by tomorrow 6pm,” the poll body said in a statement.

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Banerjee’s complaint was filed as violence was reported from the Nandigram constituency where the chief minister visited one of the polling stations to oversee voting. As the CM sat inside the booth, loud slogans with iterations of BJP's 'Jai Shree Ram' were heard, according to ANI.

The Election Commission took note of the “alleged gherao of Banerjee” and crowding at polling station No. 7 at Nandigram that resulted in disruption of poll process.

The general observer, however, told the poll body that the chief minister left the place at about 3.35 pm after staying there for nearly one and half hour and that “polling was not disrupted at any moment.”

Earlier in the day, the TMC supremo alleged, “We have lodged 63 complaints since morning. But no action has been taken... This is unacceptable." She also threatened to move the court over the issue, Banerjee said while sitting in a wheelchair outside booth 7 in Boyal in Nandigram, according to PTI. The chief minister alleged, "The EC is working on the instructions of Amit Shah," and added that “goons from other states” were creating a ruckus.

While Banerjee said her discussion with the poll observer and governor was “confidential,” Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Derek O Brien said that the chief minister referred to some specific incidents in her statement about the polling booths. “We'll consider taking next step because we want to do this not for just winning Nandigram or West Bengal but we need to do it for keeping democracy in place,” the TMC MP was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

He said that though the party was confident of winning the Nandigram assembly seat as well as the overall assembly polls, they may approach the poll body. “Even though we may win, we may still consider going to the Election Commission. We are considering it for a few booths,” he told ANI.

West Bengal is holding an eight-phased election that concludes on April 29 while the results will be announced on May 2. The Nandigram assembly constituency is witnessing a fierce battle between Banerjee, who is contesting from this seat for the first time, and BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, who was once the chief minister’s close aide but jumped the boat in December last year. While Banerjee aims to retain the chief minister’s post for the third term, Adhikari has vowed to leave politics if he fails to defeat her by 50,000 votes.