Morning Sees High Turnout in Bengal, Voting Largely Peaceful Despite Scattered Flashpoints |
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Kolkata: West Bengal’s Phase 1 polling gathered strong momentum through the morning, with overall turnout rising to 41.11% by 11:00 am. The strongest polling was recorded in Paschim Medinipur (44.69%), followed by Jhargram (43.71%) and Bankura (43.22%), pointing to brisk mobilisation in the western belt. Overall, polling remained more or less peaceful across most districts, though the morning was punctuated by scattered reports of EVM complaints, intimidation, clashes and local booth-level tension.
The most serious early disruption was reported from Mothabari in Malda, where polling was delayed for nearly one and a half hours after complaints of an EVM malfunction. Voters allegedly stood in line for a long time without being able to vote, and one voter reportedly came out of the booth without casting a vote even after ink had been applied. There were........