18 killed in panchayat poll violence in Bengal

TMC versus TMC clashes in some places, TMC versus rest in others; ballot boxes grabbed, burnt in several locations

KOLKATA: At least 18 people died across eight districts of West Bengal on Saturday as the threetier panchayat elections in 20 districts were marked by widespread violence, looting of ballot papers and rigging, people familiar with the developments said. Polling was peaceful only in Darjeeling and Kalimpong, the two hilly districts that have two-tier panchayats.

Saturday's violence raised the death toll to 37, calling into question the role of the state election commission over its failure to ensure smooth conduct of polling. The poll body was initially opposed to the idea of deploying additional forces and was even pulled up by the Calcutta high court. In a state where violence at the booth level is deeply seeped in the political culture, the election watchdog ought to have been much more competent and serious about its responsibility.

In the last 2018 panchayat polls 23 people died across Bengal, with 12 of them losing their lives on the day of polling.

The results are scheduled to be announced on July 11 but the Opposition, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the CPI(M) and the Congress, demanded a repoll at a large number of polling booths. The Congress moved the Calcutta high court seeking action against state election commissioner (SEC) Rajiva Sinha who was earlier pulled up by the court for not taking enough steps to stop pre-poll violence that claimed 19 lives between June 8 and July 7.