WB civic polls 'most undemocratic', says BJP after drubbing

After crushing defeat at the hands of ruling TMC in West Bengal civil polls, BJP today accused the Mamata Banerjee government of resorting to violence and voter intimidation to win the polls in what it described as "the most undemocratic" election.
"West Bengal civic polls have created a history of being the most undemocratic elections conducted by the State Election Commission.
"The ruling party that had claimed of winning these polls adopted all undemocratic means to secure the win," BJP national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said.
He said violence, intimidation, voter trauma, terrorising of opposition candidates, bullets, deaths and crude bombs have been the hallmark of these elections spread over 91 municipalities and Kolkata Municipal Corporations.

Singh said the State Election Commission gave the classic book example of how the "loser's cheat".
In a major boost to the party ahead of next year's Assembly polls, the Trinamool Congress today scored a landslide victory in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation bagging 114 of the 144 wards, and also won 69 of the 91 civic bodies in districts across the state.

The BJP leader said after the KMC polls on April 18 evening, the SEC announced of 62 pc polling, but after 48 hours the polling percentage changed to 68 pc as per the official announcement of SEC.
"This meant that 40 odd wards must have been rigged. If one extrapolates these 6 pc increase then TMC that is claiming to have got 114 seats in KMC would be down to 74. Moreover, if other undemocratic means were excluded then certainly TMC would have been below half way mark in 144 wards KMC," he said.

Singh said, "Rigged elections cannot be any yardstick of popular mood."
He, however, said BJP in comparison to last civic polls increased its overall tally from 16 to 81, as earlier it could win only in 9 municipal areas and currently have increased their footprints to 35 municipal areas.
He said these polls have certainly given a loud and clear message that there cannot be any free and fair elections under TMC govt because "they certainly beat Laloo's Jungle Raj".