Violence Mars Bypolls in Four West Bengal Assembly Constituencies

Reports of violence have emerged from various areas in the four Assembly constituencies where bypolls were conducted on Wednesday. The most complaints originated from the Ranaghat-Dakshin constituency in Nadia district.

In the Payradanga area of Ranaghat-Dakshin, tensions escalated following allegations of attacks and house ransackings targeting BJP workers, including a party polling agent, by masked miscreants early in the morning. Srabanti De, a BJP polling agent whose home was ransacked, stated that around 35 miscreants threatened her and warned her to stay home during the polling period. De claimed that several BJP supporters in the area faced similar threats, which she alleged were backed by the ruling Trinamool Congress. She has appealed to the Election Commission of India (ECI) for intervention.

The Nadia district police confirmed that the situation was being taken seriously, with 26 arrests made in connection to the incidents. Dr. Mukut Mani Adhikari, the Trinamool Congress candidate from Ranaghat-Dakshin, dismissed the allegations, stating that polling was proceeding peacefully and suggested that some miscreants supported by the BJP were attempting to intimidate voters in certain areas.

The ECI has requested a detailed report on the matter. As of the first two hours of voting, the average polling percentage across the four constituencies stood at 10.80%. Raiganj in North Dinajpur reported the highest turnout at 12.01%, followed by Ranaghat-Dakshin in Nadia at 11.58%, Bagda in North 24 Parganas at 10.61%, and Maniktala in Kolkata at 9.01%.