By-elections 2022 Live: Polling officials collect EVMs and other voting material, before leaving for their respective polling stations on the eve of the Ballygunge Assembly by-polls in Kolkata. (PTI)Bypolls 2022 Elections Live: Barring minor incidents of violence, the polling for West Bengal’s Asansol Lok Sabha constituency and Ballygunge Assembly seat, where by-elections are being held on Tuesday, has been peaceful, with over 52 per cent of eligible voters casting their votes till 5 pm.BJP’s candidate Agnimitra Paul alleged that people from the Trinamool Congress hurled stones at her convoy, while the police took no action, according to ANI.
On Tuesday morning, stones were hurled at the vehicle of BJP’s candidate for Asansol, Agnimitra Paul, leading to tension in a few localities of the industrial town, PTI reported. Stones were thrown when the candidate’s personal security personnel baton-charged a group of TMC supporters who gheraoed Paul’s vehicle alleging that she tried to enter a polling booth along with her security guards. Television grabs also seemed to show that her guards had tried to enter the booth. “My polling agent was not allowed to enter a booth in Barabani. My vehicle was also attacked, and the police were mute spectators. Does TMC think they can ensure Shatrughan Sinha’s victory by plotting to kill me? The BJP will again win in Asansol,” Paul said.
Meanwhile, bypolls to the Bochahan assembly seat in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur were also held. A total of 2.90 lakh voters will decide the fates of 13 candidates, three of them women, in the by-election. Altogether 1.53 lakh men, 1.47 lakh women and four voters of the third gender will exercise their franchise at 350 polling centres, which are being manned by 1,500 security personnel. Voting also took place in Khairagarh Assembly seat in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra’s Kolhapur constituency.
Polling officers carrying Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), leave for their respective polling stations on the eve of the by-election of Bochaha assembly constituency in Muzaffarpur district. (PTI)
Police have registered a non-cognisable offence against some BJP workers for alleged distribution of cash in Kolhapur, where voting for the bypoll to Kolhapur North Assembly seat is underway on Tuesday, an official said.
However, local BJP functionary Sunil Kadam alleged that they caught some supporters of Kolhapur guardian minister and Congress leader Satej Patil while distributing cash in Shahupuri area on Monday evening.
When contacted, Patil refuted the allegations of Congress workers being involved in such a malpractice and said whatever cases of distribution of cash among voters have come to light are registered against BJP workers.
Two BJP workers were allegedly found distributing cash among voters on Sunday in Sutarwada area of Kolhapur, Laxmipuri police station inspector Santosh Jadhav said. "We have recovered Rs 39,530 in cash from these two party workers and a non-cognisable offence has been registered," he said.
In another incident, three people were found with cash worth Rs 45,000 in Shahupuri area in an office of a former BJP corporator, an official from Shahupuri police station said. (PTI)
Barring minor incidents of violence, the polling for West Bengal's Asansol Lok Sabha constituency and Ballygunge Assembly seat, where by-elections are being held on Tuesday, has been peaceful, with over 52 per cent of eligible voters casting their votes till 5 pm.
The Asansol Lok Sabha seat saw 64.03 per cent polling, while the prestigious Ballygunge Assembly constituency in south Kolkata, witnessed a lower 41.10 er cent voter turnout till 5 pm, an official said. On Tuesday morning, stones were hurled at the vehicle of BJP's candidate for Asansol, Agnimitra Paul, leading to tension in a few localities of the industrial town.
Stones were thrown when the candidate's personal security personnel baton-charged a group of TMC supporters who gheraoed Paul's vehicle alleging that she tried to enter a polling booth along with her security guards. Television grabs also seemed to show that her guards had tried to enter the booth. (PTI)
People queue up to vote at Khairagarh in Chhattisgarh
Poll percentage till 3 pm—54.40% in Asansol and 34.40% in Ballygunge. (ENS)
A total of 2.9 lakh voters will decide the fates of 13 candidates, three of them women, in the bypolls in Bihar's Bochahan Assembly. Altogether 1.53 lakh men, 1.47 lakh women and four voters of the third gender will exercise their franchise at 350 polling centres, which are being manned by 1,500 security personnel.
By-poll to the seat was necessitated by the death of MLA Musafir Paswan, who had won on the ticket of Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) of Bollywood set designer-turned-politician Mukesh Sahani.
Sahani, who initially wanted to field the deceased MLA's son Amar, recently lost his ministerial berth, and subsequently the trust of his prospective candidate. Amar jumped ship and is now in the fray as the candidate of the RJD, which his father had defeated to win the seat. Sahani has now fielded Gita Devi, whose father Ramai Ram was the RJD candidate in the 2020 assembly polls.
The BJP, the former benefactor of Sahani which now seeks to prove a point after having got his scalp, has fielded Baby Kumari who enjoys the image of a “giant killer” in the constituency. Also in the fray are the Congress, which appears to have been dumped by the RJD for good, four Independents and candidates of lesser parties, including AIMIM of Asaduddin Owaisi. (PTI)
BJP's IT cell chief Amit Malaviya said the West Bengal police is "doubling up as polling agent" for the Trinamool Congress, hours after BJP candidate in the Asansol Lok Sabha bypoll Agnimitra Paul alleged her convoy was attacked. Paul also said the police were "trying to influence voting and disallowing her agents to enter polling booths".
"Such is the desperation and fear that movement of BJP leaders is being restricted on frivolous grounds, and the media is being denied access," she said.
Police have registered a non-cognisable offence against some BJP workers for alleged distribution of cash in Kolhapur, where voting for the bypoll to Kolhapur North Assembly seat is underway, an official said.
However, local BJP functionary Sunil Kadam alleged that they caught some supporters of Kolhapur guardian minister and Congress leader Satej Patil while distributing cash in Shahupuri area on Monday evening.
When contacted, Patil refuted the allegations of Congress workers being involved in such a malpractice and said whatever cases of distribution of cash among voters have come to light are registered against BJP workers. (PTI)
Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said his party should not be blamed for the violence alleged by BJP's Agnimitra Paul in Asansol. "Police is working under the Election Commission now. Why will the TMC be held responsible?" he asked.
As per figures provided by the Chief Election Commissioner, Bihar, the voter turnout in the Bochahan Assembly bypolls was 24.7 per cent till 11 am.
BJP candidate from Asansol said cars carrying media persons blocked by the police in Barabani for over an hour before being allowed to go.
"They are not allowing our polling agents to sit in booths. TMC goons ransacked my car. Now they have blocked cars of media persons," said Paul said.
Polling booths in the Khairagarh Assembly constituency provided facilities like selfie zones for voters and facilities like wheelchairs for elderly and disabled voters.
Speaking on the violence witnessed in Asansol on polling day, BJP candidate Agnamitra Paul said Trinamool Congress workers thrashed her security with bamboo sticks.
"No matter how hard Mamata Banerjee tries, BJP is winning here," she was quoted as saying by ANI.
She also hit out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's comment pertaining to the Nadia rape and murder victim. "I'm ashamed that being a woman and CM of the state, Mamata Banerjee made shameful comments that it has to be seen if the rape victim had a love affair or that she was pregnant," Paul said.
Trinamool Congress Babul Supriyo alleged that BJP candidate Keya Gosh entered some polling booths on Monday night.
He told ANI, "We approached the EC regarding that. I've been in touch with people on the ground. I suspect the CPM and BJP will hurl allegations that I'm trying to influence the voters."
Violence broke out in Asansol, where voting is underway. BJP's candidate Agnimitra Paul alleged that people from the Trinamool Congress hurled stones at her convoy, while the police took no action, according to ANI.
While eight candidates are in the fray for the Asansol Lok Sabha bypoll, the main fight TMC and the BJP. The TMC has fielded Shatrughan Sinha against Paul.
In the bypoll to the North Kolhapur assembly constituency in Maharashtra, 15 candidates are in the fray, with the main fight is likely to be between the Congress, one of the constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state, and the opposition BJP.
The bypoll has been necessitated following the death of sitting Congress MLA Chandrakant Jadhav due to COVID-19 in December 2021. Jayashree Jadhav, the wife of the late MLA, is the Congress candidate, while the BJP has fielded Satyajit Kadam.
According to the district administration, over 2.90 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise for which 357 polling stations have been set up. Counting of votes will be taken up on April 16.
The by-elections were necessitated as Babul Supriyo resigned as the MP of Asansol after switching over to the TMC from the BJP, while state minister Subrata Mukherjee, who represented Ballygunge, died last year.
The TMC has fielded yesteryear actor Shatrughan Sinha in Asansol, which has a substantial Hindi-speaking population. The BJP has nominated Asansol Dakshin MLA Agnimitra Paul.
Mamata Banerjee's party has fielded Supriyo in Ballygunge where he is pitted against BJP's Keya Ghosh and CPI(M)'s Saira Shah Halim. The Congress is also in the fray in both the seats. (PTI)
Polling began at 7 am on Tuesday for the by-election to the Asansol Lok Sabha seat and Ballygunge assembly segment in West Bengal amid tight security arrangements.
Altogether 680 of the total 2,012 booths in Asansol in Paschim Bardhaman district, and all the 300 booths in Ballygunge in south Kolkata have been identified as "sensitive".
Around 15 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in Asansol. There are around 2.5 lakh voters in Ballygunge. A total of 133 companies of central forces have been deployed in the two constituencies - 70 in Ballygunge and the remaining in Asansol.