West Bengal Exit Polls highlights: Close contest likely, 3 pollsters give edge to BJP; People's Pulse predicts TMC win

Bengal election news LIVE: Trinamool Congress candidate from Canning Paschim Assembly constituency, Paresh Ram Das, on Wednesday, alleged that CRPF personnel beat a TMC polling agent and dragged him outside the booth.

The TMC candidate said they will file a complaint against the CRPF officer involved in the alleged incident. He said CRPF personnel alleged that a complaint had been filed against the polling agent.

"Pradeep Das, polling agent in one of the booths, who was beaten by the CRPF personnel and dragged outside of the booth, saying that a complaint has been lodged against him...We will complain against the CRPF officer and take legal action against him," Paresh Ram Das said.

Bengal election news LIVE: West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal on Wednesday said repolling is likely to be announced in booths where EVMs would be found tampered with.

The CEO said that a repoll will be ordered only after the authorities get reports from the district election officer or election observers on allegations of tampering with EVMs using tapes or blot of ink.

Agarwal's comment came following allegations by the BJP that the party's symbols on EVMs were covered with tapes or ink in certain booths during the second and final phase of polling, which is underway.

Bengal election news LIVE: More than 78 per cent of 3.21 crore electors cast their votes in the second and final phase of West Bengal assembly polls on Wednesday.

The turnout remained almost parallel to phase one, which had recorded over 78.77 per cent polling till 3 pm.

Purba Bardhaman recorded the highest turnout at 83.11 per cent, followed by Hooghly at 80.77 per cent and Nadia at 79.79 per cent.

Howrah registered 77.73 per cent polling, North 24 Parganas 77.39 per cent, while Kolkata North and Kolkata South recorded 78 per cent and 75.38 per cent turnout respectively. South 24 Parganas, where several prestige contests are underway, registered 76.75 per cent voting.

Bengal election news LIVE: West Bengal BJP President Samik Bhattacharya on Wednesday cast his vote as polling for the second phase of West Bengal Assembly elections is underway across 142 constituencies.

Speaking to ANI, Bhattacharya drew a cricket analogy and said, "Our batsmen have scored a century in the first phase of the elections, now the target is a double century".

Bengal election news LIVE: Speaking to reporters before casting her vote in Bhabanipur, TMC chief and Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said that the “central forces are working for a particular party during West Bengal polls.”

Meanwhile, with voting continuing till 6 pm, political observers said the final turnout could approach or even challenge the record 93.19 per cent participation seen in the first phase.

Bengal election news LIVE: TMC supremo and Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee condemned “atrocities” and said that she has “never seen this type of democracy” as she said that no state police was allowed at any booth and CRPF has “captured” it all.

She told reporters, "From yesterday night they started atrocities, and they arrested so many of our people. It is a contempt of court. I have never seen this type of democracy... Trinamool is winning... CRPF cannot torture like this. There is no state police at any booth. They have captured it all. They should secure the border. Instead of doing that, they are securing one political party... I have never seen this. I have been fighting my election since 1984, but the atrocities are terrible…”

Later, she moved to cast her vote in the high-stakes Bhabanipur battle.

Bengal election news LIVE: Trinamool Congress candidate from Bhabanipur and chief minister Mamata Banerjee shows the victory sign as she arrives at the polling station in Bhabanipur to cast her vote.

Bengal election news LIVE: BJP's Panihati candidate Ratna Debnath, also the mother of the RG Kar rape-murder victim, faced protests by TMC workers when she visited a booth in the Assembly constituency in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district, where polling was underway on Wednesday.

She also accused the ruling party workers of stopping her from leaving the booth premises after an altercation over allegations of influencing voters.

An Election Commission official said the poll panel has sought a report on the alleged incident.

A TMC leader accused Debnath of trying to influence voters and disrupt the election process. "No one threatened her. She was staging a drama," he said.

(With PTI inputs)

Bengal election news LIVE: "Is Bengali not being trusted", asked veteran politician and three-time former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah, on Wednesday as he criticised the Election Commission over the deployment of a large number of central police personnel and officials during the West Bengal polls.

Abdullah, who is the president of the ruling National Conference, also criticised the remarks made by national leaders against Mamata Banerjee, saying the language used was "unparliamentary and not befitting this nation".

Saying that India can only be strong when its people are respected, he told PTI, "If you want a strong India, then Bengalis have the right to choose their leadership without being coerced towards any other direction."

Abdullah strongly criticised the way some sections in the government deal with state elections and regional identities, and asked whether the people of West Bengal "are being treated as outsiders" in their own country.

Bengal election news LIVE: West Bengal recorded a voter turnout of 78.68% till 3 pm on Wednesday amid the ongoing second phase of polling for the assembly elections.

Here is the district-wise voter turnout in Bengal so far:

Hooghly | 80.77%

Howrah | 77.73%

Kolkata North | 78.00%

Kolkata South | 75.38%

Nadia | 79.79%

North 24 Parganas | 77.39%

Purba Bardhaman | 83.11%

South 24 Parganas | 76.75%

Bengal election news LIVE: A voter turnout of 78.68% was recorded in West Bengal till 3 pm on Wednesday as per ECI data. The highest voting percentage is in the Purba Bardhaman district, at 83.11%.

Bengal election news LIVE: Trinamool Congress has alleged that central forces assaulted voters in the Bagda Assembly constituency.

The party's Rajya Sabha MP, Mamata Bala Thakur, told PTI, “This booth is ours, and the TMC has not lost here for the last 34 years. This booth is minority-dominated. After Union Minister Shantanu Thakur’s visit, CRPF personnel came here and assaulted voters... Around 7–8 people were mercilessly beaten... All this happened after Thakur's visit. Where is the Election Commission now?…”

Bengal election news LIVE: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikari reached the same polling booth area in Bhabanipur's Chakraberia on Wednesday morning, where they took digs at each other without any direct interaction, news agency PTI reported.

Though they did not come face to face or exchange greetings, the two rival candidates were present for a short time in ward number 70 of Chakraberia, where Banerjee was sitting outside a local party office after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local Trinamool Congress leaders.

As Banerjee stayed on the verandah of the party office, Adhikari arrived on the road just opposite the spot, accompanied by a large contingent of central forces personnel, and attacked the chief minister, claiming she had realised that "not a single vote" was coming her way.

Bengal election news LIVE: West Bengal minister and TMC candidate from Kolkata Port Assembly constituency, Firhad Hakim, cast his vote along with his family at booth number 258 at Chetla Girls' High School in Kolkata.

After casting his vote, he said, "Every time, I, along with my family, go to cast my vote. I also take my granddaughter along so that the children understand that our Constitution gives us the right to vote."

"I got a call at 1 am warning me that it would be my responsibility if anything went wrong in this area. It was a kind of a threat."

“It is the responsibility of the Election Commission to see that unnecessary delay (in voting) does not happen. The EC is paid for this from our taxes. Supporting the BJP is not the task of the Election Commission. Ensuring free and fair elections is the duty of the Election Commission, and I think they have failed in it to some extent…”

Bengal election news LIVE: Repolling in the Falta constituency is expected to be announced by the evening after BJP symbols were allegedly discovered taped on an EVM, HT has learnt.

The office of the Chief Electoral Officer is awaiting further reports before making a decision.

Bengal election news LIVE: BJP candidate from Bhabanipur, Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday alleged that he was attacked by “hooligans”.

“Hooligans attacked me at Booth Number 217... Mamata's goons are not voters; they are all outsiders,” Adhikari said. He challenging Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur, and is also contesting from the Nandigram seat.

Bengal election news LIVE: So far, over 61% voting percentage has been recorded in Bengal. However, as per state Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar, the figure may surpass the figures of first phase, when the state saw over 93% polling.

"In the first phase, West Bengal showed the country that a 93 per cent voter turnout is possible, and that elections can be free and fair. In this phase as well, we aim to match or even exceed that benchmark," Agarwal said, as quoted by PTI.

Bengal election news LIVE: The mother of the RG Kar rape-murder victim has been fielded as a BJP candidate in Panihati. On Wednesday, she alleged being attacked by Trinamool workers.

“TMC workers intensely targeted me earlier today. They sent goons who attacked me while shouting 'go back' slogans. The Police refused to cooperate when I asked them to make arrests. Now, as a candidate, I found that in this booth, ink has been put on BJP button on the EVM. How will the public be able to vote?,” she was quoted as saying by ANI.

Bengal election news LIVE: Of the 3.21 crore total electorate eligible to vote in the final phase in Bengal, 1.57 crore are women, and 792 are third-gender.

Bengal election news LIVE: The BJP symbol on the EVM at one of the booths in Panihati was allegedly covered in ink, making it illegible. After objections, the ink was removed using sanitiser, reported ANI.

A ruckus also reportedly erupted between some TMC workers, and Jay Saha, the chief election agent for the BJP candidate in Panihati.

West Bengal election news LIVE: BJP leader Locket Chatterjee has said that she heard 85% voting has been completed in Bengal, with very few left to cast their votes.

“The process is going on very peacefully. I think there will be more voting than in the first phase. Everyone should exercise their right. BJP is forming the government...Bengal is slipping from Mamata Banerjee's hands,” she rold ANI.

West Bengal voting percentage LIVE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi heaped praise on the voter turnout seen in Bengal during the first phase and the percentage being recorded as voting for the final phase continues.

"Voting for the second phase is underway in Bengal, and reports indicate a massive turnout, with people stepping out in large numbers just like in the first phase. Images of long queues at polling stations are flooding social media, reflecting the enthusiasm of the people to exercise their democratic right," he said.

West Bengal voting percentage LIVE: BJP leader Amit Malviya on Wednesday shared a clip, claiming attempts to cover the party's poll symbol with tapes at some booths.

Taking a dig at the TMC, Malviya tweeted: “In several polling booths, the option to vote for the BJP has been blocked using a tape, effectively preventing voters from exercising their choice. This is the so-called “Diamond Harbour Model,” the same template that helped Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee secure his Lok Sabha seat.”

West Bengal voting percentage LIVE: A voter turnout of 61.11% was recorded in Bengal till 1 pm on Wednesday as per ECI data. The highest voting percentage is in Purba Bardhaman, at 66.8%.

West Bengal election news LIVE: A person associated with the BJP, carrying a sharp object, “threatened” people to vote for the party in Narsingh Bose Lane, a Trinamool leader has alleged.

“We have made a video of this incident and shared it with the District Administration and the media. The police have arrested that person. BJP has lost everything, and this is the reason BJP is trying to threaten people to vote in their favour,” TMC's Abhishek Chatterjee said.