A district police officer said Kabir’s son, Golam Nabi Azad, was contesting the bypoll, but Kabir himself was neither a candidate nor his son’s polling agent. The officer said Kabir had violated rules by moving between booths and making provocative statements.
The CPI(M) separately complained that its polling agents had been denied entry to several booths in Rejinagar’s Dadpur area. The party identified booths 112, 113, 114 and 122 as locations where its agents were prevented from taking their places.
In Nandigram, Congress candidate Milan Pradhan said BJP supporters had forcibly driven his polling agents out of booths. He also accused central security personnel of failing to intervene. Congress submitted a complaint to the Chief Electoral Officer’s office.
BJP candidate Hasirani Rath denied the charges, saying opposition parties were making false claims because their political position in Nandigram had weakened.
Police also arrested Sheikh Asraful Tulla, the Congress president of Nandigram Block-1. Congress disputed the grounds for his detention during voting and said it was bringing the matter to the attention of the authorities.
With IANS inputs
