No scope for wrongdoing at counting centres: Bengal CEO Manoj Agarwal

A day after West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee spent hours at a counting centre in Bhabanipur alleging possible malpractice, state’s chief electoral officer Manoj Agarwal on Friday dismissed the claims, asserting that the process remains secure and transparent.

“There is no scope for any wrongdoing given the arrangements made,” Agarwal told reporters, adding that strong rooms housing EVMs are under round-the-clock CCTV surveillance. “One should have reason and evidence for making allegations,” he said, terming the accusations baseless.

The controversy comes ahead of the 4 May counting of votes, with tensions rising over the integrity of stored electronic voting machines. Banerjee had visited the Bhabanipur counting centre late Thursday night, staying for nearly four hours and warning that any attempt to tamper with the process would not be tolerated.

Senior officials said elaborate security measures are in place across counting centres. At Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in Kolkata — where EVM strong rooms for several constituencies are housed — additional Central Armed Police Forces and armed state police have been deployed. “Security is being supervised at the highest level, with senior officers monitoring the situation,” said joint commissioner of police Rupesh Kumar.

The ruling Trinamool Congress, however, maintained a cautious stance. Party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said workers and candidates were keeping strict vigil at counting centres on instructions from Banerjee. He also expressed concern over possible unauthorised movement during the handling of postal ballots. “Our polling agents and candidates have been alerted,” he said.

State minister Shashi Panja, who had joined a sit-in outside the counting centre on Thursday, emphasised the need for transparency. “There must be transparency in the process,” she said.

TMC leaders had earlier alleged that CCTV footage showed outsiders inside strong rooms “fiddling with ballot papers”. The Election Commission, however, rejected the claim, clarifying that officials seen in the footage were engaged in routine segregation of postal ballots and that all protocols were being strictly followed.

By Friday morning, the situation appeared calmer. Sakhawat Memorial School in Bhabanipur, which witnessed high drama overnight, returned to normalcy with security personnel maintaining vigil.

Officials reiterated that stringent safeguards are in place across Kolkata and other districts to ensure a smooth and secure counting process, even as political rhetoric continues to intensify.

With PTI inputs