Balurghat (West Bengal) [India], May 3 : Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar on Sunday claimed that repolling in the Falta assembly constituency was due to the TMC "rigging" the EVM by taping the name of the other party, exuding confidence in a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) victory in the Assembly polls.
Speaking to ANI, Majumdar said, "The ECI saw that the TMC fell to the level of rigging, taping the name of the other party, which indicates that there was no proper election in the region... BJP government is coming to power."
The Election Commission of India on Saturday announced repolling across all 285 polling stations in the Falta assembly constituency on May 21, with counting of votes scheduled on May 24.
According to ECI, the decision was made following reports of "severe electoral offences and subversion of the democratic process" during the second phase of polling on April 29.
The ECI announced that fresh polls shall be conducted in all polling stations, "including Auxiliary polling stations," from 7 AM to 6 PM on May 21, while the votes will be counted on May 24.
Majumdar also dismissed TMC's "outsider" claim against the BJP, asserting that no citizen of the nation is an outsider in West Bengal, stating that is Prime Minister Modi is an outsider, then everyone is an outsider.
"None of the citizens of the country in Bengal is an outsider... If the PM himself is considered an outsider, then everyone is an outsider too," he said.
This comes after All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) earlier launched a scathing attack on Union Home Minister Amit Shah, accusing him of a "staggering ignorance" of the state's cultural heritage.
The controversy erupted after the Home Minister reportedly mispronounced the name of the legendary Bengali poet Satyendranath Dutta, referring to him as "Satyanath Dutta" during a public address.