Repolling is currently underway in parts of West Bengal as the 2026 Assembly elections enter a crucial phase, with the Supreme Court disposing of a key petition filed by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and directing authorities to strictly follow Election Commission guidelines.

A Special Bench of the Supreme Court of India, comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and Joymalya Bagchi, took on record the statement made by the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding the deployment of counting officers.

The court instructed the poll body to adhere to its April 13 circular, which mandates that counting personnel be drawn equally from Central and State government services. Vote counting for the elections is scheduled for May 4.

Meanwhile, repolling began at 7 a.m. on Saturday across 15 polling booths in the South 24 Parganas district, following allegations of electoral malpractices during the second phase of voting held on April 29.

Repolling Underway At 15 Booths West Bengal; EVM Glitch Briefly Halts Voting

The re-voting is taking place in 11 booths in Magrahat Paschim and four in Diamond Harbour constituencies and will continue until 6 p.m.

According to early data, voter turnout has been steady.

Magrahat Paschim recorded a turnout of 16.68%, while Diamond Harbour saw 15.83% participation as of 9 a.m., with long queues reported at several polling stations.

Security arrangements have been tightened, with officials confirming that deployment remains at the same scale but with enhanced vigilance. Special Electoral Roll Observer Subrata Gupta stated that authorities are maintaining strict oversight to ensure a smooth and fair polling process.

In the political arena, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee are scheduled to hold a virtual meeting with party counting agents at 4 p.m. today.

The meeting aims to brief agents on procedures and precautions ahead of vote counting.

On the other hand, opposition leaders have intensified their criticism. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari welcomed the repoll decision but argued that it should have been extended to more booths.

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Meanwhile, BJP candidate Shankar Ghosh accused the ruling TMC of making allegations against the Election Commission out of fear of defeat.

Earlier concerns about possible irregularities at counting centres were addressed by West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal, who assured that strict security measures, including round-the-clock CCTV surveillance, leave no scope for wrongdoing.

The West Bengal Assembly elections have seen high voter engagement overall, with the second phase recording a turnout of 92.67% across 142 constituencies.

(With inputs from ANI)