At Least 15 Dead in Panchayat Poll Violence in West Bengal

The death toll in the violence that erupted during the panchayat polls in West Bengal rose to 15 on Sunday, sources said.

As per information one person was found dead in South 24 Parganas and two others succumbed to their injuries.

12 deaths were reported in the violence related to the polls till Saturday night. Among them, eight were from the ruling TMC and one supporter each of the BJP, CPI(M) and Congress.

Meanwhile, the State Election Commission has sought detailed reports into the deaths from the district magistrates (DMs).

Notably, polling for 73,887 seats in West Bengal’s three-tier panchayat system began at 7 am on Saturday. A total of 2.06 lakh candidates were in the fray. A voter turnout of 66.28 per cent, provisionally, was recorded till 5 pm, while 5.67 crore people living in the state’s rural areas were eligible to vote, officials said.

The counting of votes is slated to be held on July 11. However, the BJP, CPI(M), and Congress demanded a repoll at a large number of polling booths after several incidents of ballot box and ballot paper looting were reported.

Also Read: WB Panchayat Poll: BJP Worker Beaten to Death, Multiple Injuries Reported