West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 | 92.4% turnout, sporadic violence during last phase of polls

Kolkata: The second and final phase of polling for the West Bengal Assembly elections on Wednesday witnessed a high turnout, with 92.41% of the 3.21 crore voters exercising their franchise in 142 constituencies, although lakhs were deleted from the voters’ list over the past few months during the contentious Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

The 152 constituencies that went to the polls in the first phase on April 23 had witnessed a record 93.19% turnout. The Election Commission stated that the two phases of polling in the state have seen the highest ever participation of voters since Independence.

The EC received demands for repolling in 77 polling booths in four constituencies in South 24 Parganas district, mostly related to alleged tampering with the Electronic Voting Machines. Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal said repolling could be ordered in the booths where allegations of EVM tampering would be found to be true.

Sporadic incidents of violence were reported during the second phase of polling, apart from allegations of intimidation of voters. An elderly man died, allegedly after being pushed by the paramilitary personnel at a polling station at Udaynarayanpur in Howrah. A child was allegedly injured during a baton charge by the paramilitary personnel at Satgachhia in the South 24 Parganas district of the state.

The ruling Trinamool Congress accused the personnel of the central paramilitary forces deployed in the state by the Election Commission of committing atrocities on its workers and of being biased in favour of its principal challenger, Bharatiya Janata Party, before and during the polling in both phases.

“The BJP wants to rig this election. Polls in Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there a goonda raj here?" she said, alleging intimidation of the TMC polling agents and late-night visits by the personnel of the central paramilitary forces to the homes of the party workers. “The atrocities by the central forces are unprecedented. What is happening is not at all free and fair polls. But, despite all these, we are confident about winning,” she said after casting her vote.

The BJP, however, stated that the people of West Bengal voted fearlessly this time for a change, rejecting the corruption, hooliganism and divisive politics practised by the TMC. The party said that the EC and the central paramilitary personnel had foiled the TMC’s bid to manipulate the polling.

“The TMC goons used to attack opposition candidates and intimidate voters previously, but they can't anymore. Now, everywhere the atmosphere is free of violence and fear, and credit goes to the Election Commission,” Samik Bhattacharya, the state BJP chief, said. “People of the state now yearn for 'paribortan' (change) and removal of the TMC regime.”

Eight districts went to the polls on Wednesday. Purba Bardhaman registered the highest voter turnout – 93.83% – followed by the South 24 Parganas and the North 24 Parganas, which saw 93.39% and 92.88% of the electorate casting their votes, respectively.

The Coochbehar district in North Bengal registered the highest voter turnout at 96.04% in the first phase of polling on April 23.

Clashes were reported from several districts, including South 24 Parganas’ Bhangar, where tensions flared following complaints of EVM malfunction, triggering protests that led to a baton charge by police and paramilitary personnel to disperse crowds. Similar scenes were reported from Bally in Howrah, where paramilitary personnel intervened and resorted to baton charge outside a polling station amid allegations of disruption.

In North 24 Parganas, a clash broke out between the TMC and the BJP workers at the Arabinda Pally area during polling hours.

In Entally, Priyanka Tibrewal, the BJP candidate, alleged that the TMC polling agents crowded the booth.

In North 24 Parganas’ Panihati, BJP candidate Ratna Debnath – mother of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape-murder victim – faced protests by TMC workers after she visited a booth and requested assistance for an elderly voter. Accused by ruling party workers of attempting to influence voters, she alleged that she was prevented from leaving the booth premises following an altercation and had to be escorted out by central forces.

Debnath also raised concerns about the functioning of EVMs at another booth in Sodepur, alleging that black ink had obscured the BJP symbol and that no beep was heard after pressing the button, suggesting a possible malfunction. The EC sought a report into the incident. In Sonarpur, a separate flashpoint emerged when a central forces jawan warned against arguments near a polling station, reflecting the tense atmosphere on the ground amid competing political accusations.

Reports of EVM glitches came in from multiple constituencies, which went to the polls in the second phase, including parts of Nadia and North 24 Parganas, briefly disrupting polling before officials restored operations. Complaints ranged from delays and malfunctioning machines to allegations of symbols not being clearly visible and audio confirmation not being heard after votes were cast. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal said that repolling could be ordered in the booths where allegations of EVM tampering using tapes or ink would be found to be true.

The deletion of lakhs of voters through the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls dominated the political discourse during the assembly elections in West Bengal, overshadowing the other issues, like corruption, recruitment scams, irregularities in the healthcare sector, closure of schools and malpractices in the educational institutions and misgovernance, as well as denial of central funds to the state.