186 arrested in fifth phase of Bengal assembly polls

Altogether 186 people were arrested on Saturday in the fifth phase of the ongoing West Bengal assembly election, police said.

"(A total of) 186 people have been arrested in this phase. Of which 177 have been arrested under preventive section and nine in specific cases," said Additional Director General (Law and Order) Anuj Sharma.

The polling covered 31 constituencies in South 24 Parganas and 18 in Hooghly districts besides four in South Kolkata.

A total of 83 people were arrested in South 24 Parganas, 56 in Hooghly and 47 in Kolkata under preventive sections.

Six bombs were recovered from South Kolkata, three each from Lake and Ekbalpur police station, Sharma said.

"In a clash between Trinamool Congress and Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) supporters at Gourdha in Baruipur East constituency in South 24 Parganas, five Trinamool supporters were injured and two of them received suspected gunshot injury in hand and waist. All of them shifted to Baruipur sub divisional hospital," Sharma said.

In this case, six accused and suspected have been detained, he said.

In Bhangore constituency in the same district, four people were injured in a clash at Saturia area and a case lodged at Kashipur police station. At Natapukur area in the same seat, one was injured, Sharma said.

In a clash between Trinamool and Revolutionary Socialist Party workers at Bagankhali gram of Basanti constituency in South 24 Parganas, four were injured, Sharma added.

The Election Commission's expenditure monitoring wings seized cash amounting to Rs.94.96 lakh and 8.81 lakh litres of liquor.

"A total of 25 FIRs have been filed for expenditure related cases and 1854 cases have registered for violation of excise norms," said chief electoral officer Sunil Kumar Gupta.

The poll panel removed two presiding officers, one from Tarakeswar constituency for allegedly helping people to cast their votes and other from Arambagh for allegedly allowing unauthorised people to enter the booth and helping voters to cast their franchise, Gupta said.

"FIRs have been lodged against them," he said.

--IANS

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