One of the central issues raised by Banerjee’s legal team concerns the counting process at Sakhawat Memorial Government Girls’ School in Kolkata, where the votes were counted on 4 May.
Senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee has alleged that serious problems arose after several rounds of counting. He claimed that Trinamool counting agents were removed from the counting hall and that Banerjee herself was prevented from entering the centre.
Representing Mamata Banerjee before the Calcutta High Court, senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee questioned what happened during the later stages of counting. Referring to the position after the 12th round, he told the court, “The petitioner was leading by 7,800 (votes) in round 12.” He then alleged that Suvendu Adhikari entered the counting hall during the 13th round and that opposition agents were forced out. “From the 13th round onwards, an unimaginable thing happened,” Kalyan told the court, arguing that the CCTV footage could help establish what happened inside the counting centre.
The Election Commission rejected allegations of malpractice and disputed Banerjee’s account of events inside the counting centre. In a statement issued through the district election authorities, it said, “The counting process was done in a free, fair and transparent manner observing all due processes prescribed by the Election Commission of India and mandated Acts, Rules and Regulations.” The authorities also rejected the allegation that the CCTV cameras had been switched off, stating, “The CCTV was never switched off.”
The high court, however, has taken steps to ensure that potentially relevant evidence is not lost. In June, Justice Kanth directed the authorities to preserve CCTV footage from the counting centre as well as the EVMs, control units, ballot units and VVPAT machines used across the constituency. The judge observed that CCTV footage could be lost through routine overwriting and that the machines could constitute material evidence in the election dispute.
The proceedings have meanwhile moved into a crucial stage with Adhikari’s response now due. His written statement is expected to address the allegations made by Banerjee and provide the BJP leader’s account of the disputed events surrounding the counting process.
The case is therefore likely to turn increasingly on documentary and electronic evidence, particularly the preserved CCTV footage, EVM and VVPAT records and other election documents.
For the moment, the Election Commission’s declared result remains in force, with Adhikari recorded as the winner of Bhabanipur. Whether the alleged irregularities, if proved, were sufficient to affect the result is a matter that remains before the high court.
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