9 Killed in India’s Panchayat Polls Violence

At least nine people have been killed as India’s rural West Bengal votes for the crucial three-tier panchayat polls Saturday, which serves as a litmus test for the 2024 parliamentary elections and could reshape the state's political landscape.

Among those killed were five Trinamool members, one worker each of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Left and Congress, and the supporter of an Independent candidate, officials said.

The ruling Trinamool Congress alleged a colossal failure on the part of central forces tasked with security. Besides violent clashes that injured several people, ballot boxes were destroyed in at least two polling booths, reports PTI. 

Some 5.67 crore people are eligible to vote to choose representatives for nearly 928 seats across 22 zilla parishads, 9,730 panchayat samitis, and 63,229 gram panchayat seats.

Since the day the polls were announced on June 8, widespread violence has been reported from across Bengal. Fifteen people including a teenager have died, according to PTI.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is from the Trinamool Congress, and the party's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee led the Trinamool campaign.

They had stressed on the need to shun strong-arm tactics by its cadres and allow more democratic space to political opponents to avoid the rerun of the 2018 rural polls when it had won around 34 per cent seats uncontested.

BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar, national vice-president Dilip Ghosh, and leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari led the BJP's campaign; state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and CPI(M) state secretary Mohammed Salim led their parties' strategies.

The Indian Secular Front (ISF), with its limited presence in parts of North and South 24 Parganas, too grabbed headlines as its leader and only MLA Nawsad Siddique led the party's campaign, which often resulted in clashes with the ruling Trinamool in Bhangor in South 24 Parganas.

For the first time, the Raj Bhavan played an active role in addressing the issue of poll violence, with Governor CV Ananda Bose opening a "Peace Home" at his official residence to address complaints of people.

The polls to elect representatives for village councils will be held under the watchful eyes of the central forces for a second time since the inception of the panchayati raj system in Bengal in the late 70s. Some 65,000 central police personnel and 70,000 state police personnel will be deployed across Bengal today.

"The BJP seems to forget that people vote and not the central forces. If the BJP doesn't have the support of people, no matter how many central forces you seek, the mandate will not change," Abhishek Banerjee said. 

In the 2013 panchayat polls, the Trinamool won over 85 per cent of the seats.