The tallying of ballots began at 8 a.m. At each tallying center, central forces will be deployed and CCTV cameras will be installed.

Top ten updates on the panchayat election results in West Bengal:

1.According to the SEC, as of Tuesday at 10.30 p.m., the TMC won 28,985 gram panchayat seats and was in the lead in 1,540 seats in the rural elections marred by violence. Its closest competitor, the BJP, has won 7,764 seats and is in the lead in 417. There are elections for 63,229 gram panchayat seats in total.

2.The Left Front has secured 2,468 seats, while the CPI(M) has won 2,409 seats on its own. Currently, the Left is in the lead in 260 seats. The Congress won 2,022 seats and is currently in the lead in 139. Other parties won 725 seats and held the majority in 23 seats, while independents, including TMC dissidents, won 1,656 seats and held the majority in 104 seats.

3.The re-voting, which was ordered by the state election commission in 696 booths across 19 districts of Bengal following reports of lethal violence and booth-capturing on July 8, was held on Monday, with 69.85 percent of eligible voters casting ballots by 5 p.m.

4.On Monday, it was reported that four more people had died as a result of political violence, bringing the total to 42 since June 8, when the three-tier local body elections were announced. Allegations of vote tampering marred the panchayat elections, compelling the SEC, led by Rajiva Sinha, to order a re-vote in afflicted polling stations in all Bengal districts except for three.

5. On Tuesday, the BJP criticized the Trinamool Congress government for “state-sponsored” violence, labeling chief minister Mamata Banerjee “ruthless” and alleging that at least 45 people have been killed in the clashes. The BJP announced in a press release that it has appointed a four-member fact-finding committee to visit the areas of West Bengal affected by violence. MP and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and MP Dr. Satyapal Singh are panel members.

6.The chief minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, announced on Tuesday that 133 people from West Bengal have sought refuge in the state due to the panchayat election violence in their native country. The chief minister reassured the populace that they would receive “any humanitarian aid during times of crisis” after stating that a relief camp had been established for them.

7.On July 8, at least 19 people were killed and dozens were injured amid pervasive allegations of booth capturing, rigging, ballot box looting, heckling of polling officials, gunfire, and bomb attacks. The number of people who perished exclusively on election day is 17, seven more than on election day in 2018 when 12 people were killed.

8.Monday’s re-voting began at 7 a.m. amid strict security, with at least four members of the central forces and state police stationed in each voting booth. Those in voting booth lines at 5 p.m. were permitted to vote, with election officials working overtime to ensure a seamless process.

9.Tuesday morning, the governor of West Bengal, CV Ananda Bose, visited the South 24 Parganas district, which includes Bhangar and Canning, to assess the situation. Governor CV Ananda Bose met with Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday and briefed him on the disturbances that occurred in West Bengal two days prior.

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10.In the 2018 panchayat elections, the TMC won 34% of unopposed seats. This year, the governing party has also won several uncontested seats. The opposition claimed the cadre of the ruling TMC prevented a number of candidates from submitting nominations.

The post West Bengal panchayat election results: TMC sweeps, BJP second. appeared first on Republic Aeon.

West Bengal will conduct re-voting in the districts of Purulia, Birbhum, Jalpaiguri, Nadia, and South 24 Parganas, according to an official statement.

“The West Bengal State Election Commission, in exercise of the powers conferred upon it by sub-section (3) and sub-section (4) of Section 67 of the said Act, hereby fixes the 10th day of July, 2023 as the date of taking the fresh poll at 07.00 hours to be continued up to 17.00 hours uninterruptedly till completion and directs the District Panchayat Election Officer to fix the polling station at which poll shall be taken,” said SEC in its official statement.

BJP alleges that State Election Commission officials engaged in proxy voting.

Sunday, BJP representative Khagen Murmu claimed that the West Bengal panchayat elections had also been disrupted by proxy voting. Khagen Murmu of the BJP claimed that some presiding officers and election staff participated in proxy voting in favor of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) during Sunday’s by-elections that were marred by significant violence.

State general secretary of the BJP in West Bengal, Jagannath Chattopadhyay, also requested a re-vote in a letter to the State Election Commission.

“Yesterday, a BJP WB delegation met with you and requested that you review CCTV/video footage to determine which booths must be re-polled due to booth, looting, polling officers seen participating/assisting in rigging, or where BJP candidates’ agents were forced to leave or removed from polling stations,” Chattopadhyay wrote in a letter.

Violence during West Bengal Panchayat elections

On Saturday, West Bengal held elections for Panchayat representatives. Twenty out of thirty districts, however, were marked by pervasive violence, including ballot paper theft and vote rigging. Last year, seven new districts were established: Sunderban, Ichhemati, Ranaghat, Bishnupur, Jangipur, and Behrampur. One more district will be established in Basirhat.

Several districts, including Murshidabad, Cooch Behar, Malda, South 24 Parganas, North Dinajpur, and Nadia, reported incidents of capturing polling stations, damaging ballot boxes, and assaulting presiding officers.

Saturday, West Bengal Pradesh Congress President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury accused TMC of unleashing unprecedented levels of terror in the state.

“The ruling party’s incoherence with the police administrations…has unleashed an unprecedented reign of terror, which has claimed the lives of 26 people, and hundreds of people have been committed to the hospital with fatal injuries. Bengal’s political and electoral climate has been tumultuous…It is a mockery of panchayat elections and a textbook case of electoral fraud…,” said Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary.

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In West Bengal, voting began at 7 a.m. amid strict security in 73,887 rural seats, with 5.67 billion voters deciding the fate of approximately 2.06 lakh candidates.

The post West Bengal Panchayat Re-Polls: Repolling in nearly 700 booths of 5 districts appeared first on Republic Aeon.

Over 2,000,000 candidates are competing for 73,887 seats in a single-phase election that will be conducted under strict security measures. Since the election date was proclaimed on June 8, the state has experienced a string of violent incidents resulting in 19 deaths.

The elections serve as a diagnostic test for both parties prior to the crucial Lok Sabha elections of 2024.

Voting began at 7 a.m. and will end at 5 p.m.

Jul 08, 2023 07:32 AM IST

22 deaths attributed to electoral violence in Bengal

Two individuals were slain in Kadambagachi North 24 Parganas and Beldanga in Murshidabad, bringing the death toll from the Bengal election violence to 22.

Jul 08, 2023 07:27 AM IST
Why violence persists in Bengal

One of the greatest paradoxes of contemporary nation-States is the coexistence of ubiquitous political violence and robust democratic franchise. The diverse character of this type of violence in India – between clans, communities, faiths, and castes – is even stranger. In Bengal, however, the state most infamous for election-related violence, these social cleavages dissolve in the face of the sharp divisions along party lines, which trigger a barrage of low-intensity but frequent clashes. Read further

Jul 08, 2023 07:25 AM IST
A property was vandalized in Murshidabad just hours before the election. In the meantime, a polling station was attacked at Baravita Primary School in Sitai, Coochbehar.

Jul 08, 2023 07:20 AM IST
Images from Nandigram as the 2023 West Bengal Panchayat elections get underway

Jul 08, 2023 07:16 AM IST WB panchayat election violence claims 20 lives

After a period of intense campaigning and a nomination filing process marred by violence, panchayat elections in West Bengal began under strict security measures on Saturday morning. In addition to allegations of violence in the state surrounding the filing of nominations, similar incidents occurred afterward. One individual was killed in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal’s Khargram, while a booth was ransacked and set on fire in Cooch Behar’s Dihata.

Jul 08, 2023 07:03 AM IST
Voting commences for the West Bengal Panchayat elections of 2023.

Voting begins on 63,229 gram panchayat seats, 9,730 panchayat samiti seats, and 928 zilla parishad seats in the 2023 West Bengal Panchayat elections.

Jul 08, 2023 06:50 AM IST
Preparations are ongoing, and voters are lining up as the election countdown begins.

West Bengal Panchayat elections are about to commence, and voters in the Murshidabad district and Dinhata, Cooch Behar are lining up outside of polling stations with only minutes remaining.

Jul 08, 2023 06:38 AM IST
Images from a polling station in the South 24 Parganas district where crude bombs and weaponry were amassed on Friday.

Jul 08, 2023 06:26 AM IST
10 considerations for the panchayat election in West Bengal

In the midst of widespread violence and murders, West Bengal is preparing for Saturday’s crucial three-tier panchayat elections, which are seen as a litmus test for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Here are the ten most recent developments regarding the West Bengal panchayat election.

Jul 08, 2023 06:06 AM IST
A day before panchayat elections, hostilities escalate.

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose harshly criticized the state administration on Friday, stating that it was ‘depressing’ that people across the state were living in fear and urging them to vote their conscience and find a “permanent solution” to their problems. In response to the governor’s comments, senior TMC leader and MLA Madan Mitra stated that he should be removed from office and the state, adding that he was not even a registered voter in West Bengal.

Jul 08, 2023 05:50 AM IST
As Bengal casts its vote today, the region of Birbhum exemplifies the stakes.

Birbhum is considered a battleground district in the state due to its diverse population and history of political conflict. In the past, the TMC has won the majority of seats unopposed, but the BJP is now making inroads, capitalizing on voter discontent with the ruling party. Read further

TMC and Congress employees clash in Murshidabad on July 8, 2023 at 05:05 IST.

Before panchayat elections in West Bengal, TMC and Congress workers clashed in the Shamsherganj area of Murshidabad, according to ANI.

Police are present at the scene. More information is awaited.

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Jul 08, 2023 05:28 AM IST
West Bengal panchayat elections are marred by violence; the death toll now stands at 19.

West Bengal’s death toll in the run-up to the panchayat elections on July 8 rose to 19 after a person was allegedly murdered in the Murshidabad district late Thursday night.

The post West Bengal panchayat election LIVE: Voting begins amid violence, booth ransacked; death toll rises to 22 appeared first on Republic Aeon.