West Bengal Panchayat Polls live updates: Stone pelting and hurling of bombs reported at 2 booths in Nagharia

Today's West Bengal panchayat elections are planned to take place under tight security amid a pre-election violence environment. Voting has begun for the first round of Panchayat elections. The SEC (State Election Comission) has taken preventive measures by sending more centralised forces to keep the peace throughout the election. 

This action was taken in reaction to violent incidents that took place in the state before the rural elections. There will be just one round of voting, and the results will be tallied on July 11. Trinamool Congress (TMC), led by Mamata Banerjee, was able to win an impressive 34% of seats in the 2018 panchayat elections without facing any opposition. Elections, nevertheless, were unfortunately dominated by distressing violent episodes that affected the voting process.

Check the latest updates on West Bengal Panchayat Election here:

7.10 am: Voting started for 63,229 seats of Gram Panchayat, 9,730 of Panchayat Samiti and 928 of Zilla Parishad.

7.20 am: At Baravita Primary School in Coochbehar's Sitai, voting booth was vandalised as ballot papers were set on fire. 

7.30 am: North 24 Parganas Governor CV Ananda Bose was halted by a few CPI(M) candidates as they discussed their different problems with him on the way to a polling venue in Basudebpur.

7.40 am: Residents of Purba Medinipur district's Nandigram Block 1 claim that they will abstain from voting until central forces are stationed at booths 67 and 68 in the Mahammadpur No. 2 neighbourhood.

#WATCH | West Bengal #PanchayatElection | Residents of Nandigram Block 1 of Purba Medinipur district say that they are boycotting the election until Central forces are deployed at booth numbers 67 & 68 in Mahammadpur No. 2 area.

A voter, Govind says, "There is no Central force… pic.twitter.com/biiw5CEdrI

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

8.00 am: Sateshuddin Sheikh, a 52-year-old TMC worker, was killed in Khargram, Murshidabad. His corpse has been taken to a hospital for an autopsy. Phoolchand, a Congress employee, was also murdered during the Panchayat election nomination procedure in Khargram, and Governor CV Ananda Bose met with his family yesterday.

8.10 am: In Rejinagar, Tufanganj, and Khargram, three members of the All India Trinamool Congress party were killed, while two others were shot and injured in Domkol.

Shocking and tragic incidents send shockwaves through the voting community.

Three of our party workers have been murdered in Rejinagar, Tufanganj and Khargram and two have been left wounded from gunshots in Domkol.

The @BJP4Bengal, @CPIM_WESTBENGAL and @INCWestBengal have been…

— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) July 8, 2023

8.20 am: West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose announced on Friday that he and his staff will be out on the streets throughout voting. Describing the situation, he said that the panchayat elections will be a "fight between ballots and bullets" and committed to overview the situation in the state and take appropriate action.

9.00 am: Abdullah, a booth agent for an independent candidate, was murdered in Pirgachha, in the district of North 24 Parganas. The husband of TMC candidate Munna Bibi is allegedly responsible for the murder, according to villagers who protest and call for the arrest of the suspects. The police investigation is underway.

#WATCH | West Bengal #PanchayatElection | Abdullah, the booth agent of an independent candidate killed in Pirgachha of North 24 Parganas district. Villagers stage a protest and demand the arrest of the accused and allege that the husband of TMC candidate Munna Bibi is behind the… pic.twitter.com/XHu1Rcpv6j

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

9.30 am: Assailants attacked a polling station in Falimari gram panchayat of Cooch Behar, killing Madhav Vishwas, the polling agent for a BJP candidate. After suffering injuries, the candidate was hospitalised, and the voting was stopped at the polls. Candidate Maya Barman claims that "TMC goons murdered my agent by throwing a bomb at him. They assaulted me as well", ANI reported.

West Bengal #PanchayatElection | Madhav Vishwas, the polling agent of a BJP candidate (in picture) killed in an attack by hooligans, on a polling booth in Falimari gram panchayat of Cooch Behar. The candidate is admitted to a hospital after sustaining injuries, voting suspended… pic.twitter.com/E947kWmmVj

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

10.00 am: Reacting to the poll violence, BJP's Rahul Sinha said, "When Election Commission and Govt collude and take a decision that the ruling TMC loot the election, then what is happening now will happen."

#WATCH | West Bengal #PanchayatElection | BJP leader Rahul Sinha says, "When Election Commission and Govt collude and take a decision that the ruling TMC loot the election, then what is happening now will happen. Central forces came here but they were not sent to booths...Four… pic.twitter.com/ALOXvOWpqj

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

11.00 am: West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose said, "This is the most sacred day for democracy" while describing the violence on election day.

#WATCH | North 24 Parganas | West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose says, "I have been in the field right from the morning...People requested me, stopped my motorcade on the way. They told me about the murders happening around them, told me about the goons not allowing them to go to… pic.twitter.com/HHokbsgiAg

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

11.30 am: As voting for the single-phase panchayat elections in West Bengal commenced on Saturday, minister Shashi Panja of that state accused the federal authorities of "failing to safeguard its citizens" and said that "TMC workers have been murdered," ANI reported.

12.00 pm: To speak with the election commissioner, BSF IG S.C. Budakoti visits the West Bengal State Election Commission.

12.30 pm: The West Bengal Governor over violence on panchayat elections days, said "Elections must be conducted using ballots, not bullets"

1.00 pm: In Bardhaman's "pink booths," women in West Bengal assemble to cast their ballots.

1.30 pm: Workers from the West Bengal BJP demonstrate outside the State Election Commission headquarters in Kolkata after violent occurrences that occurred during polling for the Panchayat election around the state.

#WATCH | Amid incidents of violence during voting for the Panchayat election across the state, workers of West Bengal BJP protest outside the State Election Commission office in Kolkata. pic.twitter.com/xHcfOOWn54

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2023

2.00 pm: 36.66% of voters were registered as of 1 p.m., according to officials.

2.30 pm: Two vote boxes were reportedly thrown in a pond by residents of Dhamsa in Hooghly following an altercation between TMC and BJP workers at a polling site. The locals claim that no Central soldiers were stationed at the facility.

2.45 pm: Two children were hurt in a blast that occurred on Saturday in the South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal when they grabbed up a crude bomb from road side thinking it was a ball, according to officials.

3.47 pm: West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary reacted to Panchayat poll violence, he said, "the political and electoral environment in Bengal has been of violence...It is a travesty of panchayat elections and virtually it is an example of electoral depredations..."

3.50 pm: Amid panchayat polls in Bengal, stone pelting and hurling of bombs were reported at booth numbers 25 and 26 in the Nagharia area of English Bazar in Malda district, ANI reported. Police personnel are present at the spot.