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Amidst allegations of sporadic incidents of violence involving activists from both the ruling Left Front and the opposition Trinamul Congress, polling for all 294 assembly seats got underway on Thursday in West Bengal.
The Trinamul has accused the Communist Party of India-Marxist cadres of scientific rigging and preventing its supporters from casting their votes. The party alleged that the Left Front's 'armed' activists had attacked its workers at 118 places. However, the West Bengal police control room denied that there was any poll violence.
The CPI-M, on the other hand, has charged TC activists with 'attacking' its nominee from Entally, Mohammed Salim and his brother. Salim, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, was reportedly heckled on Thursday morning near Baniapukur police station by Trinamul workers. The mob allegedly beat up his brother. Salim is pitted against Trinamul's sitting legislator Sultan Ahmed.
In Garden Reach, Trinamul workers told rediff.com that 'Marxist goons' had driven them out of polling booths. Sanju Srivastava, a Trinamul polling agent in Garden Reach, said she was pushed out of the booth when she protested against the "rampant rigging".
"CPI-M cadres have taken control of all polling booths in Garden Reach. Though the Rapid Action Force and several other companies of paramilitary forces have been deployed there, they remain mute spectators to booth capturing. We can't even protest for they will kill us," she said.
Some kids in their early teens were also seen voting the Garden Reach constituency, where the State Minister for Minority Affairs Md Amin is seeking re-election. When this was pointed out, a polling officer expressed his helplessness. "What can we do ff polling agents say they are legitimate voters?"
Moin-ul-Haq Chowdhury, the Trinamul corporator from Garden Reach, told rediff.com that the CPI-M workers were rigging the election in connivance with the police.
Reports of scuffles have also arrived from Keshpur, which has witnessed several political clashes between the CPI-M and Trinamul activists in recent times.
According to the West Bengal's DG & IG (administration) R C Sharma, the state government has deployed over 42,000 police personnel throughout the state. Besides, 175 companies of central paramilitary forces too are monitoring the polls in all 100 assembly seats declared sensitive by the Election Commission.
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