WB panchayat elections: State BJP chief sits on dharna, accuses ruling TMC of 'fabricating results'

Alleging that the panchayat poll results were fabricated, West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar sat on a dharna (protest sit-in) outside the counting center at Balurghat College in Dakshin Dinajpur district late on Tuesday.

Counting of votes for the panchayat elections took place on Tuesday, in which the Trinamool Congress registered a landslide victory. Majumdar accused the ruling TMC of rigging the results and warned that he would take legal action in the matter.

"Despite our candidates winning the elections the results were fabricated. The Block Development Officer is biased and is an agent of the TMC. I am here to meet the BDO but he is not here We will take legal action," Majumdar added. The BJP chief also alleged that the ruling party had brought "criminals" to the counting center to help its candidates win by rigging the counting.

Meanwhile, the saffron party also criticized the TMC over the violence during the panchayat polls, calling it "state-sponsored" and claiming that at least 45 people had lost their lives in the clashes.

According to reports, election day was marred by widespread violence, vandalism of ballot papers, and tampering with voting machines. There were also reports of presiding officers being captured and attacked in several districts, including Cooch Behar, Murshidabad, Malda, North Dinajpur, Nadia, and South 24 Parganas.

During the counting of votes on Tuesday, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra launched a scathing attack on the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC. At a press conference, Patra claimed that killing in the state was "constitutional murder".

He also said that elections and violence have become synonymous in West Bengal as far as the panchayat polls are concerned, around 45 people have been killed in the state.

Words like shooting, bombing, murder, and vote rigging are used for panchayat elections. This is no accident, this is a state-sponsored murder of democracy. It is an institutional murder, that means from the police administration to the district officers and officials, everything is involved,” Patra alleged.