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Bengal election 2026 highlights: 86.9% voter turnout till 5pm; TMC holds key meet ahead of counting
Bengal election 2026 highlights: Voter turnout of 87.6% has been recorded in Magrahat Paschim and 86.11% in Diamond Harbour till 5pm, where re-polling is being held across 15 polling booths.
- 8:17 PM IST, May 2This live blog is now closed
- 8:08 PM IST, May 2Now, BJP and Congress trade barbs as repolling ends
- 7:41 PM IST, May 2Mamata holds key meeting with TMC counting agents
- 7:11 PM IST, May 286.9% voter turnout till 5pm
- 6:54 PM IST, May 2Repolling at 15 booths ends in South 24 Parganas
- 6:38 PM IST, May 2Mamata confident of winning 200 seats
- 6:15 PM IST, May 2‘TMC was able to perpetrate poll violence despite high security,’ alleges Shyampukur BJP candidate
- 5:20 PM IST, May 2What prompted the repolling at 15 polling stations?
- 4:54 PM IST, May 272.5% turnout in Magrahat Paschim, 72.36% in Diamond Harbour till 3pm
- 4:38 PM IST, May 2165 additional counting observers, 77 police observers
- 4:20 PM IST, May 2TMC-BJP clashes in South 24 Parganas
- 4:17 PM IST, May 2Locals in Falta allege threats by TMC
- 3:50 PM IST, May 2EC deploys more counting, police observers
- 3:44 PM IST, May 2Lotus blooming in Bengal, says BJP MP
- 3:30 PM IST, May 2Differently-abled voter unable to vote as caretaker denied entry into polling booth
- 3:06 PM IST, May 2ECI will take the best decision, says BJP leader
- 2:45 PM IST, May 254.6% turnout in Bengal's Diamond Harbour
- 2:29 PM IST, May 256.33% voter turnout recorded in Magrahat Paschim
- 2:12 PM IST, May 2‘BJP will form govt’, says Sukanta Majumdar
- 2:02 PM IST, May 2What Kapil Sibal said on SC's order over TMC plea on counting staff
- 1:59 PM IST, May 2TMC's Saugata Roy says repolling 'not new'
- 1:35 PM IST, May 2Locals hold protest in Falta, claim threats by TMC leaders
- 1:27 PM IST, May 2TMC's Shashi Panja flags fresh security issues at EVM strong room
- 1:08 PM IST, May 2TMC files complaint against Returning Officer
- 12:51 PM IST, May 2Peaceful polling so far, ECI official says
- 12:28 PM IST, May 2Nearly 37% turnout across Magrahat Paschim and Diamond Harbour
- 12:13 PM IST, May 2TMC flags ‘vote counting delay scam’, questions ‘delay’ for counting of votes
- 11:55 AM IST, May 2What SC said on TMC plea against EC order on vote counting
- 11:31 AM IST, May 2TMC's Shashi Panja arrives at EVM strong room in Kolkata
- 11:26 AM IST, May 2‘Mamata Banerjee fighting ECI’s corrupt business': Sanjay Raut
- 11:24 AM IST, May 2Amit Malviya alleges “TMC goon” scaled walls to gain access to EVM strong room
- 11:12 AM IST, May 2‘Hardly matters if nominee is from Centre’, says SC
- 10:53 AM IST, May 2SC records EC statement over circular mandating state govt official during counting
- 10:42 AM IST, May 2SC hearing on TMC's plea over counting staff begins
- 10:33 AM IST, May 2Suvendu slams move to deploy contractual employees for counting duties
- 10:21 AM IST, May 2EVM malfunction stops voting for an hour in Diamond Harbour
- 10:08 AM IST, May 215.83% voter turnout in Diamond Harbour till 9 am
- 10:06 AM IST, May 216.68% voter turnout in Magrahat Paschim constituency till 9 am
- 10:01 AM IST, May 2Voter expresses frustration over issues with EVM in South 24 Parganas
- 9:51 AM IST, May 2Voters complain of EVM malfunction amid repolling
- 9:42 AM IST, May 2Exit polls will prove wrong again, says Farooq Abdullah
- 9:24 AM IST, May 2Mamata, Abhishek to hold meeting with all TMC counting agents
- 9:14 AM IST, May 2Voters in Diamond Harbour cast votes again, say repolling is ‘fine’
- 9:03 AM IST, May 2SC to hear TMC’s plea over counting supervisors today
- 8:38 AM IST, May 2‘People no longer have any faith in EC’, says Bengal Congress chief
- 8:23 AM IST, May 2‘Scared of poll defeat’, BJP's Shankar Ghosh slams TMC
- 8:12 AM IST, May 2TMC claims 'BJP strategy' behind repolling
- 7:57 AM IST, May 2TMC plea over EC's central staff order for vote counting to be heard in SC
- 7:37 AM IST, May 2Police and other security personnel deployed at booth in Diamond Harbour
- 7:31 AM IST, May 2BJP's Suvendu Adhikari backs repolling in 2 seats
- 7:25 AM IST, May 2What TMC's Shashi Panja said on ECI's repolling order
- 7:19 AM IST, May 2Voters queue up outside booth in Magrahat Paschim
- 7:10 AM IST, May 2Why is voting being held again in 2 seats?
- 7:03 AM IST, May 2Repolling at 15 booths in 2 assembly seats begins
- 6:54 AM IST, May 2Voter turnout in Phase 1 and Phase 2 of Bengal elections
- 6:48 AM IST, May 2ECI received at least 77 EVM tampering complaints
- 6:33 AM IST, May 2Repolling in 15 polling stations today
West Bengal election 2026 highlights: Voter turnout of 87.6% has been recorded in Magrahat Paschim and 86.11% in Diamond Harbour till 5pm, where re-polling is being held across 15 polling booths. According to the EC order issued on Friday for repolling, the voting was scheduled to be held between 7am to 6pm....Read More
Amid the repolling, violence was reported from South 24 Parganas where the TMC and BJP supporters clashed. The BJP supporters alleged that they were being prevented from voting by the TMC supporters. The tense situation prompted the security measures to be strengthened, news agency PTI reported.
Falta constituency was rocked by protests as locals alleged threats by the TMC. Videos shared by news agency ANI showed locals getting into heated arguments with the security personnel.
The voter turnout for the repolling across 11 polling booths in Magrahat Paschim Assembly has hit 72.5%, while the 4 booths in the Diamond Harbour Assembly recorded a turnout of 72.36% taking the combined turnout to 72.43% till 3 PM on Saturday amid the ongoing repolling in the South 24 Paraganas district in West Bengal.
Voting is underway on Saturday at 15 booths in two assembly constituencies in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, Magrahat Paschim and Diamond Harbour, where the Election Commission ordered repolls a day earlier after reports of electoral malpractice.
Repolling began at 7 am on Saturday at 15 polling stations in two assembly constituencies of West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district. This comes after reports of Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) tampering during the second phase of polling on Wednesday.
The repolling is being conducted at 11 booths in the Magrahat Paschim Assembly constituency and four booths in the Diamond Harbour Assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas on May 2.
“Repolls have been ordered in 11 polling stations in the Magrahat Paschim Assembly seat and four polling stations in the Diamond Harbour Assembly constituency. We are still awaiting reports regarding the complaints from the Falta Assembly seat,” said a senior official of the poll panel in Kolkata.
EVM tampering complaints
The ECI had received at least 77 complaints linked to EVM tampering during the second phase of the West Bengal elections.
Officials said that in some cases, the buttons of a political party on EVMs were covered with adhesive tape or darkened with ink, stopping voters from casting their votes. In some cases, attar was applied to the buttons so that anyone pressing them could be identified by rival parties.
BJP demanded a repoll
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has demanded a repoll, alleging that the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) was behind the tampering.
The repolling follows claims by Amit Malviya, head of the BJP’s IT cell, who said voters were prevented from voting for the party candidate at several polling booths in Falta under the Diamond Harbour constituency during phase two of the state assembly elections.
On polling day, West Bengal chief electoral officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal said polling booths where any EVM button was found taped would face repolling, after the BJP raised allegations of irregularities in Falta under the Diamond Harbour constituency.
