WB Panchayat Election 2023: 9 killed in clashes; long queue of voters at polling booths

WB Panchayat Election 2023: Multiple incidents of violence have been occurring in different regions of West Bengal since June 8. In the most recent case, a person named Abdullah Ali was identified as the victim in Kadambagachi, located in the Murshidabad district of North 24 Parganas.

Voting for the West Bengal panchayat election 2023 is underway amid tight security. However, it is reportedly said that as many as nine people were killed in Murshidabad district during the intervening night on Friday (July7), taking the toll to 23 since the poll dates were announced.

Multiple incidents of violence have been occurring in different regions of West Bengal since June 8. In the most recent case, a person named Abdullah Ali was identified as the victim in Kadambagachi, located in the Murshidabad district of North 24 Parganas. Additionally, another individual lost their life in the Beldanga area of Murshidabad district.

It is reportedly said that a polling booth at Baravita Primary School in Coochbehar's Sitai was vandalised and ballot papers were set on fire. The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) claimed that three of its party workers have been "murdered" in Rejinagar, Tufanganj and Khargram and two have been left wounded from gunshots in Domkol.

In a tweet, the TMC said, "Shocking and tragic incidents send shockwaves through the voting community. Three of our party workers have been murdered in Rejinagar, Tufanganj and Khargram and two have been left wounded from gunshots in Domkol."

"The @BJP4Bengal, @CPIM_WESTBENGAL and @INCWestBengal have been clamouring for the deployment of Central Forces. So, where are the Central Forces when they are needed the most? This signals a colossal failure on their part to ensure the safety and security of the people, before the polls have even commenced!" it further said.

A 52-year-old TMC worker, identified as Sateshuddin Sheikh, was killed in Khargram of Murshidabad. His body has been brought to a hospital for postmortem.

Urging the people of rural Bengal to exercise their franchise in the panchayat elections without fail, On Saturday, governor CV Ananda Bose hit the streets since the voting started. He will visit polling booths in several areas of the districts.

His first halt was at North 24 Parganas. The governor described Saturday's panchayat polls as a "fight between ballots and bullets" and said that he would monitor the situation throughout the state and take corrective measures.

A total of 2.06 lakh candidates are in the fray for elections to 73,887 seats in the three-tier panchayat system in the state.

The ongoing election holds great importance for political parties, as it presents an opportunity for them to evaluate their organizational strengths and weaknesses in preparation for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Moreover, it will provide a general indication of the state's sentiment after two years of the TMC government's third consecutive term.

There are 63,229 gram panchayat seats and 9,730 panchayat samiti seats in 22 districts, while 928 zilla parishad seats in 20 districts as Darjeeling and Kalimpong have a two-tier system with Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) and Siliguri Sub-divisional Council at the top.