Mamata reaches Bhabanipur’s counting centre EVM strong room alleges tampering of vote machines

Kolkata, Apr 30 (PTI) Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Thursday landed up at the Sakhawat Memorial School in South Kolkata, the counting centre for the Bhabanipur assembly segment, which houses the strong room for EVMs of the polls which were held on April 29, suspecting malpractice and tampering of the voting machines.
    Banerjee reached the venue in the evening, ignoring torrential rains in the city and was still seated inside till reports last received.
    Kolkata Mayor and TMC candidate for the Kolkata Port segment Firhad Hakim too reached the spot but failed to meet the chief minister who had already moved inside the strong room along with her election agent.
    “I reached here upon learning that the chief minister has arrived. But I couldn’t meet her since she was already inside the premises, exercising her right as a candidate to visit strong rooms. I wasn’t allowed there. I will not be able to confirm what exactly is transpiring inside,” Hakim said, while waiting outside the school premises.
    The development took place at a time when party candidates from two North Kolkata seats, Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja, staged a sit-in protest outside Khudiram Anushilan Kendra premises, alleging irregular activities and tampering of EVMs stored inside strong rooms of the facility, triggering face-offs between TMC and BJP supporters.
    In a video message, Banerjee had earlier urged TMC leaders, workers and polling agents to maintain a 24-hour vigil of the EVM strong rooms, stating she suspected BJP plans to tamper with the machines before counting began on May 4.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)