Agartala: The opposition INDIA bloc in Tripura, primarily led by the CPIM and Congress, alongside smaller parties, has raised concerns over alleged manipulation of the democratic process as polling commenced for the Ramnagar assembly constituency and West Agartala Parliamentary seat.
In a joint letter addressed to the Chief Electoral Officer and signed by INDIA bloc candidates Asish Kumar Saha for West Tripura and Ratan Das for Ramnagar, it was claimed that the ruling party had been attempting to influence the electoral process through intimidation and unfair practices.
“The reports of widespread manipulation have been flooding in since the morning from various parts of 1-Tripura West Parliamentary constituency, including 7-Ramnagar Assembly Constituency in Sadar. In numerous polling booths, INDIA Bloc polling agents have either been forcibly removed or prevented from entering. Some have even been subjected to physical violence. In 7-Ramnagar Assembly constituency, residents along the Indo-Bangladesh border, predominantly Muslims and opposition supporters, were allegedly threatened last evening against attempting to approach polling booths. BJP workers purportedly confiscated voter slips distributed by the Election Commission from many households in this constituency,” the letter stated.
Furthermore, the letter highlighted several instances in Ramnagar, Bishalgarh, and other critical constituencies where voters were purportedly obstructed from exercising their franchise.
“In 7-Ramnagar AC, by 12:00 Noon, polling booths No. 1, 3, Booth 4 to 15, Booth 17 to 32, were reportedly captured and completely manipulated. In various booths across Bishalgarh, Sonamura, Udaipur, Santirbazar, and Belonia, most opposition candidate polling agents were allegedly driven out or assaulted. Instances were noted where identified opposition voters were removed from voter queues. If this trend of manipulation persists, the elections for 1-West Tripura Lok Sabha and the 7-Ramnagar by-election will become a mockery of democracy. Although it is belated, we still believe there is room for salvaging the rights of voters and protecting democracy from being undermined,” the letter added.
In response to these allegations, Returning Officer for West Tripura Parliamentary constituency, Dr. Vishal Kumar, stated that immediate action was taken upon receiving complaints.
Disputing the opposition’s claims of widespread violence, Dr. Kumar remarked, “We have received several complaints from certain locations, especially in assembly segments such as 6-Agartala, 7-Ramnagar, and 8-Bardowali. Response teams were dispatched to most areas, but we did not observe significant restrictions on voters. Numerous complaints regarding intimidation of polling agents were also received from the opposition, but upon investigation, normalcy was found. The opposition parties failed to provide specifics regarding polling agents who were allegedly attacked or obstructed from performing their duties.”
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