The Election Commission of India has ordered repolling in 15 booths across two constituencies in West Bengal following complaints of irregularities during polling.
Fresh voting in Magrahat Paschim, Diamond Harbour on May 2
As per an NDTV report, the Commission has ordered repolling in 11 booths in Magrahat Paschim and four in Diamond Harbour, both in South 24 Parganas district.
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"I am directed to state that based on reports received from the concerned Returning Officers and the Observers of 142-Magrahat Paschim AC and 143-Diamond Harbour AC regarding poll taken for General Election to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal, 2026, held on 29th April, 2026 and after taking all material circumstances into account, the Commission hereby declares, under sub-section (2) of Section 58 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, that the poll taken on 29th April, 2026 for the aforesaid election at the following Polling Stations (as mentioned in Column 3 of the table below) to be void and appoints 2nd May, 2026 as the date and fixes the hours, for taking fresh poll at the said Polling Stations," Bengal's Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal wrote in the order.
Fresh voting will take place on May 2 between 7 am and 6 pm. Officials said candidates have been informed, and directions have been issued to ensure wide publicity in the affected areas.
Security tightened in Kolkata amid EVM row ahead of counting
Meanwhile, Kolkata Police have imposed restrictions on public gatherings in several parts of the city ahead of vote counting, following heightened political tensions over alleged irregularities involving electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Restrictions have been issued in seven different areas where vote counting is to be conducted, namely Shahid Khudiram Bose Road, Judge’s Court Road, Jadavpur, Diamond Harbour Road, Lord Sinha Hall, Naresh Mitra Sarani (Beltala Road), and Pramathesh Barua Sarani.
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This decision has been made amidst political turmoil sparked off by the controversy raised by the All India Trinamool Congress in connection with strong rooms and EVMs.
With counting day approaching, security has been intensified across sensitive locations to ensure the process proceeds without disruption.
