West Bengal election: TMC worker shot at; party blames CRPF
A worker of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal was shot at on Thursday as the state voted for the sixth phase of the Assembly elections, the party said, blaming the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) for the incident. The Election Commission, however, dismissed the party's allegations. People in 43 Assembly constituencies voted on Thursday for the ongoing polls.
TMC worker Kabirul was shot in the leg by a CRPF personnel at booth number 79 of Dighra Malikberia area in Ashoknagar, North 24 Parganas district, the ruling party alleged. The incident occurred during polling. In another incident, in Uttar Dinajpur's Chopra area, shots were reportedly fired as clashes broke out between activists of the TMC and the rival Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Chopra clash erupted over allegations of heckling by agents of a polling booth. Both parties denied having used any firearm and blamed the other for the violence. The Chief Electoral Officer's office sought a report on the incident from the local administration. There were also reports of sporadic violence from Bijpur constituency, where TMC and BJP supporters clashed outside polling booths.
West Bengal is voting in the sixth phase of the state Assembly elections on Thursday. At 5 pm, the voter turnout stood at 79.09% even as the state witnesses a surge in COVID-19 infections. The remaining two election phases will be held on April 26 (across 36 Assembly constituencies), and April 29 (35 constituencies). The votes will be counted on May 2.
