The Election Commission of India has announced repolling in booths where black and white tape covered the BJP symbol button on EVMs.
State Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal said that the repolling could be held across the entire Assembly constituency if such incidents are reported in a large number of booths.
“Repolling will be conducted in all polling stations where black or white tape has been found on EVMs. On the other hand, if such incidents of tape being found are reported in a large number of booths in any Assembly constituency, then repolling will be held across the entire Assembly seat,” said the State Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal.
The development comes shortly after the BJP flagged the issue. Party leader Amit Malviya shared a purported video on X that showed the option to vote for the BJP was blocked using tape.
The alleged video, Malviya claimed, was from a polling booth in Falta Assembly constituency in Diamond Harbour.
“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,” Malviya said.
He claimed that the same issue was found in several polling booths, where the option to vote for the BJP in the EVM machine was blocked.
“This is the so-called “Diamond Harbour Model,” the same template that helped Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee secure his Lok Sabha seat,” he said.
The BJP leader had further demanded immediate repolling in all affected booths and provided details of such polling booths with “evidence”.
“We demand an immediate repoll in all affected booths in Falta where such incidents have occurred. Details of a couple of such booths, along with evidence, are provided below: Falta 144 Part 170 Room No. 2 – Harindanga High School. Booth 189 is also compromised in a similar manner along with several others,” the BJP leader added.