Kolkata fire which destroyed 4,000 EVMs sparks sabotage claims, political row

A major fire at the South 24 Parganas district administration headquarters in Kolkata's Alipore area has triggered a criminal investigation and political controversy after around 4,000 electronic voting machines (EVMs), along with administrative records and office infrastructure, were destroyed in a blaze that swept through parts of the building on the morning of Wednesday, 10 June.

While the scale of the destruction is significant in itself, the timing of the incident has become the central issue in the political debate that has followed.

The fire comes shortly after allegations of counting irregularities in several constituencies during the April Assembly elections and amid discussions within political circles about possible legal challenges to some results. Against that backdrop, the destruction of the EVMs has prompted questions about whether the loss of the machines could complicate any future recounts, verification exercises or court proceedings relating to disputed seats.

The blaze affected the Zilla Parishad offices and the additional district magistrate's establishment. However, investigators and political leaders alike have focused on what has been described as an unusual pattern of damage within the building.

Initial assessments suggest the fire may have originated on lower floors before spreading upwards. Yet several intermediate floors reportedly escaped major damage even as upper floors, where the EVMs were stored, suffered extensive destruction.

The unusual spread of the fire has led investigators to examine the possibility of sabotage alongside more conventional explanations such as electrical faults or failures in fire-safety systems.

TMC spokesperson Krishanu Moitra linked the incident directly to the party's concerns over the election process. "The destruction of EVMs at a time when we were moving towards legal challenges over counting irregularities effectively benefits the BJP, as it eliminates the possibility of recounting or judicial verification in those contested seats," he said.

The controversy deepened after Kaushik Chowdhury, minister of state for fire services, publicly questioned how the blaze spread through the building. "The fire broke out on the fourth and fifth floors. How did it spread to the ninth and tenth floors? There are no signs of fire on the intervening floors. It needs to be investigated how the fire skipped the middle floors to reach the upper ones. Four thousand EVMs belonging to 10 Assembly constituencies were stored on the top floor; they have all been destroyed," he said.

Chowdhury later added that authorities had received information suggesting the fire may initially have broken out on the second or third floor, making the damage pattern even harder to explain. "We came to know that the fire was first at the second or third floor. It is unclear as to how the fire reached the top floors whereas, the fifth, sixth and seventh floors were relatively less affected. This is why we are thinking that there might be sabotage," he said.

The remarks have added to speculation surrounding the incident, though investigators have cautioned against drawing conclusions before forensic examinations are completed.

Police sources said four individuals present in the building shortly before the fire have been questioned, but no evidence of suspicious activity has emerged so far. According to officials, those questioned included maintenance and cleaning staff carrying out routine work.

Investigators are also examining questions about the early response to the fire. One senior officer pointed to reports that the blaze had initially been declared under control before flames were later discovered on higher floors, raising questions about whether the extent of the fire had been properly assessed.

A forensic team visited the site on Thursday, 11 June, but was unable to collect adequate samples because of the intensity of the heat. Officials are expected to return for a more detailed examination, while detectives from Kolkata Police headquarters at Lalbazar have joined the investigation.

The destruction of such a large number of EVMs has also drawn attention to the storage and security of sensitive electoral equipment. For the Election Commission and the state administration, an immediate concern will be whether all statutory records, backups and documentation connected to the machines remain intact.

For critics of the election process, the timing appears strikingly convenient. For investigators, however, the task remains establishing whether that perception reflects coincidence or something more.