2 Days to Go, 15 Booths to Vote: What's Behind Repolling in West Bengal's Magrahat Paschim and Diamond Harbour

New Delhi: Just two days before the scheduled vote counting on May 4, repolling is taking place today (May 2) at 15 booths in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district. These booths, which originally voted during the second phase on April 29, are holding fresh elections after the Election Commission addressed reports of EVM tampering.

The original polling held on April 29 at these booths has been declared void under Section 58(2) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, said the poll body in an official release, adding fresh elections will be held on May 2.

Starting at 7 AM, fresh voting began across 15 locations in South 24 Parganas, specifically covering 11 booths in the Magrahat Paschim constituency and 4 booths in Diamond Harbour.

In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, the EC said the repolling has been ordered based on inputs received from the state poll machinery, and voting will be held from 7 am to 6 pm today.

Why the re-polls?

The Election Commission directed new rounds of voting at 15 stations within the Magrahat Paschim and Diamond Harbour constituencies after investigating reports of vote manipulation that allegedly occurred during the second phase.

BJP's co-incharge of West Bengal, Amit Malviya, alleged that voters were prevented from choosing the party candidate at several polling booths in Falta under the Diamond Harbour constituency during phase two of the Assembly elections in the State.

He claimed that in multiple booths, the BJP option was allegedly blocked using tape, calling it the "Diamond Harbour Model" and demanding a repoll in the affected areas.

In a post on X, Malviya wrote, “This is what Mamata Banerjee was defending when she spoke up for Jehangir Khan, a criminal contesting on a TMC ticket from Falta in Diamond Harbour. In several polling booths, the option to vote for the BJP has been blocked using a tape, effectively preventing voters from exercising their choice. This is the so-called 'Diamond Harbour Model,' the same template that helped Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee secure his Lok Sabha seat.”

Amid the political slugfest, on the day of polling, West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal said that the polling booths with taping of any EVM button will undergo repolling, after the BJP alleged irregularities in Falta under the Diamond Harbour constituency.

"If reports of taping of any button come in, that should be verified and noted. If true, those booths will go for a repoll," West Bengal CEO said.

Blame games continues

While the BJP praised the Election Commission's move and suggested that fresh voting should be extended to even more booths within those constituencies, the Trinamool Congress dismissed the decision as a "devious" BJP tactic designed to tarnish the state's reputation.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Shashi Panja has alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) deliberately attempted to "provoke" unrest during polling in West Bengal as part of a "strategy" to force repolling in multiple booths and defame the state.

"The EC thinks that a repoll was warranted out there. That is why, just in the press conference, we replied that this was basically the strategy of the BJP that on the day of the poll, first phase or the second phase, they would provoke the other political parties. There were incidents where they would incite some kind of trouble so that there could be a massive repoll in many more booths. We did not react to their provocation," she told

Voter Turnout in Bengal

The final phase of polling for the high-octane West Bengal assembly elections concluded at 6 PM on April 29, with voter turnout hitting remarkable numbers at 90% before the closing hour. Security arrangements are in place at strong rooms in Howrah ahead of the counting of votes on May 4. 

Also Read: West Bengal Assembly Elections: Repolling Begins at 15 Booths in South 24 Parganas