Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Debangshu Panda has taken a commanding lead of more than 69,000 votes as counting continues in the repoll for West Bengal’s Falta Assembly constituency.
After 15 of the 20 counting rounds, Panda had secured 1,03,089 votes, while his nearest rival, Sambhu Nath Kurmi of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), polled 33,416 votes. Abdur Razzak Molla of the Congress was in third place with 9,089 votes.
Although Trinamool Congress nominee Jahangir Khan had withdrawn from the contest ahead of the repoll, his name remained on the EVMs, technically keeping him in the race. After 15 rounds of counting, he had received 5,134 votes.
Repolling across all 285 booths in the constituency was conducted on May 21 after the earlier election held on April 29 was countermanded following allegations of EVM tampering and other irregularities.
More than 87 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the repoll, which took place under heavy security cover. The Election Commission had deployed around 35 companies of central forces across the constituency to ensure peaceful voting.
The constituency had witnessed tension after complaints emerged during the April 29 polling regarding the alleged use of perfume-like substances and adhesive tapes on EVMs at several booths.
Before opting out of the race, Khan said he withdrew “in the interest of Falta” and cited assurances of a special development package from West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari as one of the reasons behind his decision. The rinamool Congress, however, distanced itself from the move, describing it as Khan’s “personal decision”.
The BJP, which had already expressed confidence about winning the seat, now sees Falta as a likely addition to its Assembly tally.
If the BJP wins the constituency, its tally in the 2026 West Bengal Assembly polls would rise to 208. However, its effective strength in the Assembly would remain 207 after Adhikari’s decision to vacate the Nandigram seat following his retention of Bhabanipur.
