Cong-CPM clash in Malda

Statesman News Service

MALDA, May 18: The police had to fire three rounds in the air to stop a clash between Congress and CPI-M supporters at Palashbona village in Ratua-II block during panchayat polls in Malda district today. Tension prevails at Sreepur-II gram panchayat over allegations of booth jamming and rigging by the political parties. The police fear more violence will occur later this evening. The Chanchal SDO Mr D Sarkar said: “Political workers from both the CPI-M and the Congress were preventing voters from entering the polling premises, which led to the clash." Booth jamming and rigging was also reported from Sholmari village under Chanchal-II block with the Congress and the CPI-M trading charges against each other. The CPI-M leadership today lodged at least 20 complaints against the Congress till 2 p.m. and demanded re-polling in three booths. The Congress accused the CPI-M with booth capturing for poll rigging. The Congress has also lodged complaints against the CPI-M following reports of booth capturing at Majampur in Kaliachak I, at Noorpur in Manikchak. The police had to take a hard stance to bring the situation under control at Noorpur where Congress and the CPI-M supporters engaged in repeated clashes. Congress supporters allegedly beat the CPI-M workers at Mahisbathani polling station in Old Malda this morning. The CPI-M workers were allegedly dragged out of the polling station premises. Three houses were damaged in the skirmish. The CPI-M has demanded re-polling at Mahisbathani and at two other polling stations at Batna in Ratua-I. Polling process was stopped for a few minutes at Dhangar in Chanchal-II block. At Bamongram village in Kaliachak-I block both the Congress and the CPI-M workers charged each other with booth capturing. Four Congress polling agents were assaulted by the CPI-M here. The police recovered bombs from the house of Congress workers at Bamongram and brought the situation under control.

Statesman News Service (Manas Banerjee)

The Malda district magistrate Mr C R Das today said that no polling official had breached the election guideline inside any polling station in the district including the questionable one at Majampur in Kaliachak block I. The DM was reacting to media reports of a polling official rigging at Mjampur. The clippings aired by a section of the electronic media showed that a woman voter apparently was casting votes in front of the polling officer and on his table. That voter was handing over ballots to one polling official and he was dropping those in respective ballot boxes.The district magistrate immediately instructed an inquiry into the incident, which was carried out by administrative officials and the report submitted to the DM.“Sector officials visited the polling station and found nothing wrong about the procedure. There was no report of malpractice inside the polling station in question,” Mr Das, said.