Trinamool Congress chief and outgoing West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday alleged large-scale irregularities and violence during the counting of votes for the Bhabanipur Assembly poll, claiming that the District Election Officer had indicated days in advance that the counting process could be manipulated.
“I know that he had sent a message to someone 15 days ago, saying ‘counting mein khel hoga’,” she told reporters in Kolkata.
Banerjee claimed that the BJP began projecting 195-200 seats for itself in the media following the first round of counting without waiting for subsequent rounds. She alleged that BJP workers, accompanied by central forces, entered counting centres and assaulted Trinamool counting agents.
The allegations came a day after BJP leader and the Leader of the Opposition in West BengalSuvendu Adhikari, defeated Banerjee by a margin of 15,000 plus votes.
Banerjee said she was leading by around 30,000 votes with a few rounds remaining when she was informed that her party’s counting agents had been forced out. She alleged that party workers, including women, were beaten, and official documents were snatched.
The Trinamool Congress supremo further claimed that she was stopped from entering the counting centre and was initially denied access by CRPF personnel. She said she later managed to enter and urged the Returning Officer to halt counting until normalcy was restored.
Banerjee also alleged that she was physically assaulted inside the premises and claimed that CCTV cameras were not functioning at the time of the incident.
“I went inside for a few minutes. They kicked me in my belly, backside and manhandled and assaulted me,” she said.
She further accused local election officials of prior knowledge of irregularities, alleging that warnings about manipulation during counting had been communicated earlier.
The TMC chief also accused the BJP of “stealing the elections” in collusion with the Election Commission, refusing to concede defeat in the recently-concluded election.
“We did not fight the BJP, we fought the Election Commission, which worked for the saffron party,” Banerjee said.
The Trinamool Congress on Monday lost power after 15 years, with the BJP winning over 200 seats in the 294-seat Assembly. The TMC folded up with 80 seats.
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